GamerBytes

Save The Species With DodoGo!

editors@gamerbytes.com (Ryan Langley) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 15:39:54 +0000

Originally announced as a retail game, it appears Neko Entertainment plan to bring AlienAfterAll's charming puzzler DoDoGo! to DSiWare.

DodoGo! is similar to the classic Mario Vs. Donkey Kong 2 and Lemmings games where you have to lead several smiling Dodo eggs through different scenarios. You'll be creating platforms, adding rope, or filling up holes to lead these happy eggs through each level.

Just going by the trailer it looks like a lot of fun, and certainly looks better than the majority of DSiWare titles out there. This is the sort of game DSiWare needs to prove itself. There is a lot of hidden gold in low-key European developers like AlienAfterAll which don't get the recognition they likely deserve - this game is one to support. At the very least it'll be better than those Cocoto games Neko have been releasing on WiiWare.

The game has currently been rated for DSiWare on the ESRB and Aussie COB rating boards, and we'll hopefully see an official information about the game before its release.

Trailer - Robot Rescue On DSiWare

editors@gamerbytes.com (Ryan Langley) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:57:27 +0000

Teyon's Robot Rescue popped up on the DSiWare store this week, but we didn't get a good look at it. With its release we also got this trailer.

The game is currently available in North America for for only 200 Nintendo Points, and should come to Europe in the near future.

Source: Nintendaan

Round-Up: Gamasutra Network Jobs, Week Of November 20

editors@gamerbytes.com (Simon Carless) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 10:52:01 +0000

In our latest employment-specific round-up, we highlight some of the notable jobs posted in big sister site Gamasutra's industry-leading game jobs section this week, including positions from Relic Entertainment, Zoe Mode and more.

Each position posted by employers will appear on the main Gamasutra job board, and appear in the site's daily and weekly newsletters, reaching our readers directly.

It will also be cross-posted for free across its network of submarket sites, which includes content sites focused on online worlds, cellphone games, 'serious games', independent games and more.

Some of the notable jobs posted this week include:

Relic Entertainment: Senior Director Of Development
"The Senior Director of Development executes the developmental strategy of the studio in accordance with the GM and THQ’s strategic and tactical objectives. Responsible for ensuring project development achieves operating objectives and financial goals; ensuring development efficiency and product timeliness, and otherwise ensuring consistency and process improvements across projects."

2K Games: Channel Marketing Manager
"2K Games develops and publishes top-line PC, console, and handheld entertainment software, with a strong concentration in three distinct categories: sports, high profile licenses and specialty product. Some of the hit titles in 2K's lineup include the critically-praised Bioshock, Sid Meier’s Civilization IV, and The Darkness. 2K Games is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc."

Raven Software/Activision: Senior Game Designer
"Raven Software is looking for a Senior Designer for our latest unannounced action title, primarily focusing on combat systems and encounter design. Designers will work with the rest of the team to create and implement combat systems, AI behaviors, and scripted events in the game world. Additionally, the Senior Designer will act as the arbiter of quality for all the combat sequences in the game, working closely with other designers to make sure we have consistent, high-quality combat encounters throughout the game."

Sony Computer Entertainment America: Maya Technical Director
"Be a part of the most exciting and innovating computer entertainment in North America. Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) markets the PlayStation® family of products and develops, publishes, markets, and distributes software for the PS one™ console, the PlayStation®2 and PlayStation®3 computer entertainment systems and the PlayStation Portable (PSP™)."

Zoe Mode: Senior Technical Artist
"As a Senior Technical Artist, you’ll define and drive the technical vision and art pipelines for multiple games throughout the studio. You will work closely with both the Lead Artist and engineering staff to create powerful, yet easy to use, systems for artists and designers to use in our ground breaking games."

To browse hundreds of similar jobs, and for more information on searching, responding to, or posting game industry-relevant jobs to the top source for jobs in the business, please visit Gamasutra's job board now.

New TOW: Things On Wheels Trailer Surfaces

editors@gamerbytes.com (Ryan Langley) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 14:47:41 +0000

It's been a year since we've heard any official word on TOW: Things On Wheels, but it appears that everything is fine, and the game is on track to be released soon.

As we sussed out earlier this year, Southpeak Games decided to drop publishing Things On Wheels, and as shown by the trailer is now published by Focus Home Interactive. The game looks a lot better since the last time we saw it, where the trailer couldn't hold a steady frame rate.

Now it's just a matter of whether it can stand up against the upcoming JoyRide game. Let's hope so.

Dino Gems To PSP Minis Early December

editors@gamerbytes.com (Ryan Langley) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 09:35:45 +0000

When a popular franchise takes its sweet time to come to a platform, the knock-offs can take advantage of it. That's basically what StormBASIC are planning with Dynogems on PSP Minis.

Dynogems is already available on the iPhone and will pop up on PSP minis on December 3rd, and is essentially a knock off of PopCap's AstroPop currently on Xbox Live Arcade. It does a pretty good job of it too, and with PopCap having no plans to bring anything to the PSP currently, it will do quite nicely.

Mahjong Tales: Ancient Wisdom Comes To XBLA As Mahjong Wisdom: Ancient Tales

editors@gamerbytes.com (Ryan Langley) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 15:14:41 +0000

Earlier this year TikGames and Creat Studios brought Mahjong Tales to the PlayStation Network, now it appears the game is coming to Xbox Live Arcade with a name switch-around.

According to the Aussie COB rating board TikGames are going this one solo without Creat Studios. They've done this before as well - Interpol was released on XBLA at the start of the year by TikGames themselves, but was published months later on PSN by Creat.

Unlike XBLA's Funtown Mahjong, which is based on traditional Mahjong, Mahjong Wisdom is based on the Mahjong Solitare. While it did receive some so-so reviews on the PSN, mostly for sluggish control, the developers at TikGames will hopefully fix any problems people had before this game gets released. The name change this time around is pretty odd, but I guess it's a workaround for... something.

You can check out some screenshots of the PSN version here in the meantime, and we should get an official announcement soon.

XBLA Update - Gyromancer, Diner Dash, Peggle Nights DLC And Cheap NHL Arcade

editors@gamerbytes.com (Ryan Langley) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 13:17:51 +0000

You can now grab Diner Dash, Gyromancer and Peggle's Peggle Nights DLC from the Xbox markerplace right now. What are you waiting for? Get to it.

Gyromancer

Developer: SQUARE ENIX / PopCap
Publisher: SQUARE ENIX
Genre: Role Playing Games
Price: 1200 Microsoft Points

"Gyromancer is a puzzle-role playing game (RPG) featuring a unique battle system based on Bejeweled Twist combined with elements of Square Enix role-playing games. This is one experience you won't want to miss. Try it now!"

* Battle system: Gyromancer has a new battle system based on Bejeweled Twist. Command unique beasts to battle your foes.
* Hidden treasures: Search the map for items, coins, and new beasts to fight at your side. Gain levels in battle and acquire powerful new beasts!
* Deadly mage: Assume the role of Rivel, a deadly mage, as he rids Aldemona Wood of a brooding darkness!

Click here for the official Xbox.com splash page.

Diner Dash

Developer: Backbone Entertainment
Publisher: Hudson Entertainment Inc.
Genre: Family Games
Price: 800 Microsoft Points

"Diner Dash, the number one PC time-management game has landed onto Xbox LIVE®! Guide Flo, a former office-worker turned restaurateur, as she builds up her diner empire. Go online and face players in head to head matches to see who's the best Flo. Join up with a friend or another player online for a Team Dash game where your team takes on six other players to see whose diner is the best in town."

* Fresh look: Fresh looks are the special of the day, as Flo, her customers, and her restaurants come to life in three dimensions and in high definition graphics.
* Fast action: Take on all the different diners with 10 levels in each. Seat patrons, take their order, deliver their food, take their payment, and bus their table as efficiently as possible within the time limit allowed. Your customers will lose patience and leave if they aren't satisfied. Remember, service with a smile!
* Pick up and play: Two all-new control schemes are designed specifically for your controller, a point and click style with hotkeys, and an arcade style where you directly control Flo as she runs around.
* Multiplayer: Hop online for some brand-new eight-person multiplayer in Team Dash Mode, and 1-on-1 in Head to Head Mode!

Click here for the official Xbox.com splash page.

Peggle - Peggle Nights DLC

Price: 400 Microsoft Points

"Play the next episode of the peg-busting phenomenon from PopCap! Shoot and clear the orange pegs from 60 wild, dreamscape levels and bask in Extreme Fever glory. Meet the Peggle Masters’ alter egos and wield 11 Magic Powers, and then try the ultimate Peggle test — 60 Grand Master challenges!"

Download the new content via Xbox web marketplace here.

3-On-3 NHL Arcade

This week you'll be able to pick up EA's 3-On-3 NHL Arcade for half price, now available for just 400 Microsoft Points. You can grab it here.

On Vacation, Back In A Week

editors@gamerbytes.com (Ryan Langley) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 05:40:01 +0000

Things will be moving on a little bit slower this week - I'll be over in Bali for the week, soaking up the sun, buying cheap stuff, and trying to make sense of the language.

There are a few stories that we've set up for the rest of the week to keep you occupied, but we won't be able to post the full XBLA, PSN or WiiWare updates.

Just giving you a heads up.

XBL Indie Games - Inside Lacrosse's College Lacrosse 2010

editors@gamerbytes.com (Ryan Langley) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 09:27:08 +0000

It has been 8 years since a Lacrosse game has been attempted, but now thanks to the Xbox Live Indie Games initiative we can play Inside Lacrosse's College Lacrosse 2010

"Inside Lacrosse's College Lacrosse 2010 brings you the fastest, most physical game on two feet. Now anyone can dodge hard to the cage, throw crazy stick checks, and snipe corners in the first ever field lacrosse video game. Build your own roster, edit your jerseys, upgrade your equipment, and challenge people from around the world to a game of lacrosse on Xbox LIVE!"

It's only 400 Points and, like all Indie Games, includes a demo. So go download it via the Xbox web marketplace.

It's Peggle Mania This Week

editors@gamerbytes.com (Ryan Langley) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 02:33:57 +0000

PopCap have announced that the PlayStation Network version of Peggle will be available this week in North America - and the Peggle Nights expansion will be available on both XBLA and PSN this week too.

The Peggle Nights expansion adds a new character and doubles the amount of maps. The Xbox Live Arcade version will include 3 new achievements, and we assume the PSN version will do the same. The expansion will only cost 400MSP / $4.99, half the price of the PC version.

The Impact Of Modern Warfare 2 On The Xbox Live Arcade

editors@gamerbytes.com (Ryan Langley) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 00:50:26 +0000

Over the past few months we've been looking at the Leaderboard data of Xbox Live Arcade games on a weekly basis to try and determine how well a game might be selling. With the release of Modern Warfare 2 last week Xbox Live saw over 2 million concurrent players online, breaking previous records.

So if everyone's playing Modern Warfare 2, how did it affect sales of Xbox Live Arcade? Quite significantly.

For the top sellers sales were down significantly - Trials HD leaderboards, which has been in around the 15,000 mark for some weeks, dropped 40% to nearly 9,000 players while South Park, Zombie Apocalypse and Tower Bloxx Deluxe all dropped nearly 50%.

The question now is - will they jump back up in a week or two, or will Modern Warfare 2 continue to dominate all the way through Christmas?

In-Depth: North American PlayStation Network Sales, October 2009.

editors@gamerbytes.com (Ryan Langley) — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 18:47:47 +0000

[In this article, Ryan Langley examines the performance of October 2009's PlayStation Network debuts, including the new selection of PSP titles, the PSP Minis lineup, and new PSN games like Critter Crunch. He also looks into why map packs and downloadable content are here to stay.]

This month, we're doing things a little differently - we unfortunately have not received the official Top 10 PSN Sales for North America. What we have done, however, is look at the American Store itself, which has its own top downloads section that is updated every week with the a Top 20 PSN, PSP, PSOne and overall downloads lists.

So, much like the Xbox Live Major Nelson Top 10, we're able to see what is doing well throughout the week. These lists include a Top 18 of games, including PSN, PSP and PSOne Classics, a Top 20 of overall things on the store, including Add-On Content, and Top 20s of Top PSOne Classics, PSP specific games and PSN games.

Alongside this data we've been fortunate enough to retrieve Leaderboard data for some of the releases this month, so we can give a better look at some of the new games that came out this month, as follows:

The Top 18

First of all I would like to point out the missing week - this is due to the PlayStation Store not updating the top sellers lists. Each lists' data is based on the PlayStation Store update that it appeared on. (We presume the lists are based from Thursday to Wednesday, but it's somewhat difficult to tell.)

Despite the release of the PSP Go, Final Fantasy VII beat every other available game in the opening week, including the newly released Gran Turismo PSP. It should be noted that FF VII can be played on both PS3 and PSP platforms, though.

The other PSP specific titles to hit the Top 18 in the first week were God Of War: Chains Of Olympus at 6th place, Tetris -- the only PSP Mini to chart in the whole month -- at 11th, and Madden NFL 10 at 18th.

Leaderboard Data And New Releases

Of the eight new PlayStation 3-based PSN releases during these four weeks, five had trackable leaderboards. These can give us a good indication on how well they sold. This leaderboard data was taken on the 31st of October.

UNO's leaderboards are based purely on ranked online matches, so it is safe to say the actual sales are likely higher, as most players would go online in unranked matches. Like the Xbox Live Arcade version, UNO has done very well and continued to stick around the Top 10 throughout the month. With over 28,000 players on those limited leaderboards, and likely far more overall (though it is a multiplayer-heavy game, so multiple PSN accounts per purchase are possible), it bested all other games this month, even and at $5 more than its Xbox cousin.

Creat Studios' Digger HD did okay as a re-imagining of a old PC puzzler, with over 9,000 players. As it went up against the PSP Go's release, it was largely ignored by the gaming press. But after seeing a lot of Xbox Live Arcade games in October fall short of these Leaderboard statistics, it will probably continue to sell reasonably well.

Capybara Studios decided to sell their new PSN version of Critter Crunch for only $6.99 in the hopes to get more sales. But in its first week it only garnered 7,000 players on the leaderboards, and a total of 15,300 for the month. The developers were notably saddened by the low sales, but appears to have done better than other releases. It should be noted that the game has yet to see a release outside North America, which may account for the stunted sales.

Creat Studios' Mushroom Wars also didn't fare too well, with less than 5,000 players on the leaderboard, Much like Digger HD, it was largely ignored by press and reviewers despite the three reviewers on Metacritic all giving good scores.

Boolat Games' Topatoi currently has 6,500 players on the leaderboard for its first level. However, this also includes players in Europe who received the game nearly 4 months prior. It's safe to say its American release did not do much for the game overall.

Unfortunately Trine and detuned do not have Leaderboards, so we're unable to give a realistic number on their player base. But going by the 'Most Popular' list both have had a strong start. The final release, Buzz Jr. Monster Rumble, did not hit the list at all.

One of the strangest omissions from any of these lists is Konami's Zombie Apocalypse, which has been doing very well throughout October on the Xbox Live Arcade, and yet never appeared on the PlayStation Network list.

The Reason Why We See Call Of Duty Map Packs

The above lists are the top downloads (by unit, not revenue) overall - including any paid content on the store, including Add-On Content and Dynamic Themes. Puts things into perspective, doesn't it?

Released on August 6th, the 3rd Call Of Duty: World At War Map Pack dominates the charts, beating any PSP or PSN game currently available, while the first and second map packs (now 7 and 5 months old) continue to be in the Top 10. The COD4 Variety Map Pack, now 19 months old, continues to sit in the bottom half of the Top 20 and outsell new games regularly.

The Fallout 3 downloadable add-ons, which were all released on the PlayStation Network in October, have also dominated the charts - great to see, considering the game is nearly a year old now. It's intriguing to note that fans had been holding onto their copies of the game all this time and are willing to re-engage now, while the Xbox 360 received all that DLC months earlier.

Rock Band' s downloadable music also seems to be doing well on the PlayStation Store - Alanis Morissette's "Ironic" hit 14th spot in its second week of availability, while Rock Band's Queen Pack hit 4th spot in its release week -- with "Another One Bites The Dust" and "Under Pressure" single song downloads making it in at 15th and 18th place. Blink 182's “What’s My Age Again?" also found its way into the final week at 16th place.

The Beatles: Rock Band Abbey Road DLC also hit in the last week of October, and jumped to third most downloaded piece of content for the week, but was beaten by Trine and the third World At War Map Pack.

It's remarkable to see that, even its opening week of being available, a game like Gran Turismo PSP (albeit at a higher revenue number) could not beat any of the three World At War map packs in sales, let alone PSN UNO and Final Fantasy VII in its first week of sale. Some super-opinionated gamers may yell and scream about downloadable content being a 'nickel and dime'-like negative thing, but it doesn't mean much when they outsell everything on the store.

PSP Games

So the PSP Go was released at the very beginning of October, and alongside it came 100 new games -- either digital only, or UMD conversions that were originally only PSP retail releases. So how did they all fare?

Compared to everything else, as seen by the PSN list above, they haven't done too well. There was talk of games like Motorstorm: Arctic Edge not doing so well in U.S. retail on the September NPDs, but that title at least seems to have fared a little better on the PSN Store.

As discussed earlier Gran Turismo and God Of War: Chains Of Olympus have continued to sell strongly each week. PixelJunk Monsters Deluxe started out strong but slowly flowed down the list, and has since fallen out of the Top 20. Monster Hunter Freedom Unite, considered a difficult sell compared to its popularity in Japan, also did surprisingly well with new PSP Go owners.

In the final week, the whole Grand Theft Auto PSP catalog was made available, and jumped into the Top 10 taking 1st, 5th and 7th place. Despite poor retail sales of Chinatown Wars (unconfirmed NPD-citing reports claim around 10,000 copies sold in October in the U.S.), it seems to have done well here, and will likely populate the list for weeks to come.

The Minis

In terms of PSP Minis, Tetris, Hero Of Sparta and Fieldrunners were hits out of the gate and made their way into the Top 10 list even battling against the 100 new retail releases -- and continued to hold on throughout the month. Mahjongg Chapter 2 slid into 16th place on its week of release.

PlayStation Classics

Lastly we take a look at the Top PSOne Classics currently on the store. As we stated earlier, Final Fantasy VII, Silent Hill, Metal Gear Solid and Final Fantasy Tactics have continued to take the Top 5 positions on the list throughout the month.

The most surprising game is Sim City 2000, which has kept itself high on the list all this time despite its strong PC heritage.. Perhaps its a sign that Sim City, like 2K's Civilization Revolution, has the power to make a comeback on a HD console down the road. The same could be said for the popularity of Nuclear Strike, which has continued to be in the Top 10 since its release on October 1st.

Other releases such as Um Jammer Lammy, Gex 3 and Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation didn't seem to fare as well, and did not hit the lists in their opening weeks. Finally the two PSOne Oddworld games were released in the final week of October and shaped up nicely, hitting the top downloaded list -- and have since continued to sit in the Top 5 ever since.

Looking Forward

The PlayStation Network has a few games to look forward to in November - Braid has already been released, and it will be interesting to see if it can grab a foothold like the original did on the Xbox Live Arcade.

There's always a chance we could see PixelJunk Shooter drop in along with Gravity Crash. Now with Modern Warfare 2 out and about, will we see the World At War Map Packs drop off in popularity? Tune in next month to find out.

NA Nintendo Update - Pokemon Rumble,, WiiWare Demos, Digidrive, Indiana Jones' Greatest Adventures And More

editors@gamerbytes.com (Ryan Langley) — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:25:09 +0000

This week on WiiWare you can grab Pokemon Rumble, a real-time battle game variant of Pokemon, but fighting against numerous foes at a time. You can grab it for 1500 Nintendo Points.

Alongside the game are WiiWare demos! You can grab a free trial version of BIT.TRIP BEAT, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life as a Darklord, NyxQuest: Kindred Spirits and, exclusive to North America, World of Goo. Pokemon Rumble also gets a demo.

Nintendo DSi owners can now get their hands on Art Style: Digidrive, developed by Q-Games, for only 500 Nintendo Points. Alongside it you can also get Arcade Bowling and Robot Rescue for 200 Points each.

The Virtual Console brings Street Fighter II': Championship Edition, the.. what, fourth? fifth? version of Street Fighter II onto the Wii - this time the Turbografx version for 700 Points. If you want a Lucasarts kick, you can also grab the Super NES game Indiana Jones' Greatest Adventures for 800 Points.

Pokémon Rumble
Publisher: Nintendo
Players: 1-4
Price: 1,500 Wii Points

"Available exclusively for the WiiWare service, Pokémon Rumble is an action game in which you control Toy Pokémon (referred to as "Pokémon") and take on wave after wave of other Pokémon in a variety of stages. You can befriend some of the defeated Pokémon along the way, which lets you add them to your collection and grants you the ability to use them in battle. Switch between collected Pokémon at any time, taking advantage of the fact that the amount of damage you deal depends on the type of move used and the type of Pokémon hit. Be the last one standing to gain the right to compete in the Battle Royale and test your skills against many Pokémon at once. You can also team up with three people for some multiplayer action (additional Wii Remote controllers required), working together to take down tough Bosses and earning points that can be used toward recruiting or training Pokémon. You can even save your favorite Pokémon to your Wii Remote™ controller for exchanges with friends. Combining beautiful cel-shaded graphics and exciting game-play features, this is one rumble you won't want to miss. Note that a demo version of Pokémon Rumble is also available for zero Wii Points."

BIT.TRIP BEAT Demo
Publisher: Aksys Games
Players: 1-4

"BIT.TRIP BEAT brings retro action back as you use the Wii Remote controller's motion sensor to bounce beats in this rhythm game. Retro visuals, classic game play, four-player multiplayer and an 8-bit soundtrack will get you in the zone and rock your world. Pay attention, though: As with most classic games, the challenges are mighty. If you can stay cool as the difficulty increases, you'll discover the beginnings of the BIT.TRIP saga."

FINAL FANTASY CRYSTAL CHRONICLES: My Life as a Darklord Demo
Publisher: SQUARE ENIX
Players: 1

"Step into the royal shoes of the Darklord's daughter as she installs traps and monsters inside her tower to fight back the endless waves of invading adventurers in this world-conquest role-playing game. Filling your demonic tower with monsters and traps called Artifacts is your only hope to keep the adventurers from destroying the Dark Crystal on the top floor. Fly your tower across the land and conquer every stage on your way to dominating the entire world."

NyxQuest: Kindred Spirits Demo
Publisher: Over The Top Games
Players: 1-2

"NyxQuest: Kindred Spirits is the awesome story of Nyx, an enigmatic winged girl who must descend from heaven in search of her missing friend, Icarus. Fly over the ruins of ancient Greece and avoid falling into blazing sands or perishing in the claws of cruel harpies and hydras. You'll need the help of Zeus and other benevolent gods from Olympus to summon their powers. They will let you cast rays, modify the scenery and control winds at will. Fly, aim and shoot using the Wii Remote controller. Play with a friend and maximize your abilities: While one player controls Nyx, the other will control the powers from the gods."

World of Goo Demo
Publisher: 2D BOY
Players: 1-4

"World of Goo is an award-winning, physics-based puzzle/construction game made entirely by two guys. Use living, squirming, talking globs of goo to build structures, bridges, cannonballs, zeppelins and giant tongues. The millions of Goo Balls that live in the beautiful World of Goo are curious to explore, but they don't know that they are in a game, nor that they are extremely delicious."

Indiana Jones' Greatest Adventures™
Original platform: Super NES™
Publisher: LucasArts
Players: 1
Price: 800 Wii Points

"Grab your trusty whip and slash your way through all three Indy classics in this no-thrills-barred adventure. If it happened in the movies, it happens here: the giant boulder from Raiders of the Lost Ark, the mine-cart chase from Temple of Doom, the three trials from Last Crusade, Rene Belloq and Colonel Vogel – it's three times the action, all in one fully loaded game."

STREET FIGHTER II': CHAMPION EDITION
Original platform: TurboGrafx16
Publisher: Capcom
Price: 700 Wii Points

"This is the classic PCEngine (TurboGrafx16) version of the two-player fighting game that started it all. At the time, a large capacity HuCARD was used to allow faithful recreation of the dynamic arcade game and its features, including bonus stages and sound effects. In the game, players select one of 12 characters and face opponents in a no-holds-barred battle to decide the top fighter. Master a character's special moves and combos to defeat your rivals around the world. In "V.S. BATTLE" mode, there's a convenient handicap feature. Using this feature to adjust a character's performance, a novice player can be evenly matched against a seasoned player to enjoy an intense, head-to-head combat experience."

Art Style™: DIGIDRIVE™
Publisher: Nintendo
Players: 1-2
Price: 500 Nintendo DSi Points™

"It's traffic control with a twist as you try to direct identical cars down the same road in Art Style: DIGIDRIVE. This constantly moving puzzle game combines an easily understood playing field (an intersection) and a simple goal (create fuel), challenging you to properly guide a never-ending stream of cars. Stack similar cars five deep to create some fuel, then use that fuel to continue your progress in the game. Play in ENDLESS mode to see how long you can last, or compete against the computer or a human opponent in VS mode. Use combos to your advantage and see if your reflexes can handle the intensity of Overdrive mode. When all is said and done, you may never look at gridlock quite the same way again."

Arcade Bowling
Publisher: Skyworks Interactive
Players: 1
Price: 200 Nintendo DSi Points

"From Skyworks comes another addictively classic game, Arcade Bowling. It was designed by video game legend David Crane, one of the original founders of Activision and one of the most critically acclaimed game designers of all time. In the tradition of everyone's favorite Boardwalk bowling game, use your stylus and steady aim to flick "laser" balls down the alley and up the ramp into the scoring holes. The farther away the scoring hole is, the more points you'll get. Arcade Bowling features three futuristic sound tracks, state-of-the-art 3-D graphics and two addictive game modes, Classic and Progressive. In Classic Mode, roll up to nine balls to score as many points as you can. In Progressive Mode, enjoy multiple levels of game play with increasing score plateaus and bonus targets."

Robot Rescue
Publisher: Teyon
Players: 1
Price: 200 Nintendo DSi Points

"Robot Rescue is a fun logic game based on a simple but entertaining concept. Your mission is to free robots trapped in 45 evil computer labyrinths while avoiding deadly traps. Sound easy? Not so fast. Each robot shares linked controls, so when you move one, you move them all. It will take clever planning and nerves of steel to pull off this electronic escape. You'll need to avoid many traps, such as mines or electrical circuits, and take advantage of special elements like glue stains. Choose one of three difficulty levels and get ready for a challenge."

Polar Panic Breaks The Ice On XBLA, PSN

editors@gamerbytes.com (Ryan Langley) — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 15:47:47 +0000

Valcon Games and Eiconic Games have announced Polar Panic, a fast paced action-puzzler that could give Bomberman Battlefest a run for his money.

Polar Panic follows a Polar Bear that has lost his home and family through the evil Globo Co. destroying everything in its path. Now is the time to take action - by pushing ice blocks around.

Based on the trailer the game is surprisingly fast - much faster than Bomberman or Adventures of Lolo were. It's also giving you feedback constantly, something which developers seem to forget is key to games like this.

The game features 50 single player levels, which seems to play out much like a SNES Bomberman's store mode, 50 puzzle levels and a 4-player survival mode.

It looks really nice, but also looks like something that might get overlooked based on the name and premise - hopefully that will not be the case. The game is coming soon, likely before Christmas, so keep a look out for it.

Source: Polarpanic.com

Johnny Platform Returns To Save Christmas

editors@gamerbytes.com (Ryan Langley) — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 15:42:15 +0000

Popular XBL Indie Game Johnny Platform is making his triumphant return - this time to save Christmas, and drink more coffee.

The original Johnny Platform's Biscuit Romp was a 3 week port of a homebrew Nintendo DS title, and fitted in well with the XBL Indie Games scene. Johnny Platform Saves Christmas has been completely reworked, now taking advantage of the full screen, has had a bump up in resolution, and now 100 new stages to travel through - 50 more than the original.

The game will be released just before this Christmas.