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‘Floor Kids’ is Kid Koala’s video game tribute to breakdancing
Kid Koala is not a game developer. Born Eric San, the Canadian DJ and turntablist has been spinning records and making beats since he was 12. Over the past three decades, he's DJ'd breakdancing battles and worked with legends of the electronic music scene like Amon Tobin. He's also scored films, written graphic novels and even collaborated with Mike Patton of Faith No More and Dan the Automator on an album of "love" songs. But he is not a game developer. Like many, he grew up playing Super Mario Bros., and back then if you'd told him one day he'd work with Nintendo, he'd never have believed you. His latest project is Floor Kids, a rhythm game that's a celebration of breakdancing culture. It's something he worked on, one way or another, for over ten years. The game was released last December for Nintendo Switch as part of the company's "Nindies" program. When San and creative partner Jonathan "JonJon" Ng were first approached by Nintendo, neither had any idea what a Switch was, but agreed anyway. "Nintendo was like some company from outer space that created this awesome game," he said. "It was a no-brainer for me." Now, the game is coming to PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One very soon.
Kingdom Heroes scoots into open beta with weekend events
After a short couple weeks of closed beta, Kingdom Heroes has announced their transition into the open beta phase. This would be the "historical" MMO that teaches you all sorts of fascinating "facts" about ancient China, such as how their female warriors fought in elegantly revealing bikinis (at least according to the front page of the site). While they're currently only stress testing a single server in NA, Kingdom Heroes has plans to open a EU server in the near future. As part of the open beta celebration, Aeria Games is hosting a number of special beta events for this upcoming weekend. GMs are coming out of the woodwork to run hide-and-seek games, statue dance contests, secret giveaways and awards for special milestones reached. Yes, once again we learn the insidious truth that our high school history textbooks kept from us: ancient Chinese armies were bolstered by their elite breakdancing skills. So if historical breakdancing and entire armies playing hide-and-seek thrill you to your very core (or you just want to check out an interesting-looking MMO), then head over to the Kingdom Heroes website and download the open beta today.
Manoi Go break-dancing robot blows our minds
We've got no idea how this nugget of glorious mechanized boogie snuck past us -- we'll blame it on the horror we experienced while watching Doka Harumi's robot dance routine. Another entrant in that same Japanese robo-dance contest, this red-blazered drone brings the pain, the funk, and all necessary accessories to rock your world. We're not kidding -- if you don't like this, you don't like technology. Skip past the break for not one, but two doses of that mind-altering video action.
'A' for optimism, 'D' for style: the Red Bull BC One DS
It's normally only the biggest names that get splashed across limited edition DS Lites -- the Nintendogs, Zeldas, Pokémons, Guitar Heros, and Final Fantasys of this world. Playlogic clearly feels that Red Bull BC One is ready to join that elite bunch, because it ordered in an unspecified number of Onyx Black DSes and proceeded to uglify them by slapping these forgettable transfers on each.We don't wish to be mean-spirited, but we're struggling to see who will pick this up. In our experience, limited edition DSes are based on games with either a rabid fanbase, huge brand power, or both. As out of touch with modern culture as we are, we're fairly certain that Red Bull BC One has neither. At least the children of Playlogic CEOs know what they're getting for Christmas.%Gallery-26441%[Via Go Nintendo]
You got served (some new screenshots)
We just dropped (like they were hot) a bunch of new screens into our gallery from the dance competition game with the Rub Rabbits-meets-Frankenstein aesthetic, Red Bull BC One. Unfortunately, these latest screens do about as much to flatter the game as the last set did: flat, detail-free backdrops with low-poly character models just don't look that great. We understand the kind of heavily stylized appearance they were trying to do, and if that had happened, we would have found it awesome. We respect the idea, at least.We're willing to give BC One a certain amount of leeway just based on the fact that it is a game about breakdancing.%Gallery-19997%
WoW laser etching impresses and inspires
Here's an example on how to take a really cool concept and make a bad choice. Not that we think the etching itself looks bad, but there are all sorts of other cool WoW designs the owner could have put on this Macbook. We certainly understand the meaning of putting the very image players see when entering World of Warcraft's uh, world, onto your machine. To be honest we were half-expecting to see a Horde or Alliance symbol when we first heard of this homebrewed homage. That being said, the skills of whoever etched this are quite impressive; can we resist saying level 325 etching skill? Nope, we can't.If it were up to us, there would probably be something ridiculous on there like a bunch of Murlocs playing Poker or maybe some kind of breakdancing Troll.
Today's best sfx video: Street Fighter 2 Dancer vs. Baby
This video illustrates how a good sound effects editor can really take something cringe-inducing and make it hilarious. Perfect integration of the sfx plus great timing on the slow motion really make this a gem. And before you think we're all cruel and heartless, we definitely hope that baby is just fine. Please, no one mention this at all to Jack Thompson.
Movin' with the B-Boys
Man, I feel like it's 1990 all over again. Sony's upcoming B-Boy looks like it'll be a blast. You control a break dancer trying to prove his worth on the street. We've covered this game pretty extensively so far, so read up and then enjoy this lengthy gameplay video.
Hands-on with B-Boy
Marco, regular PSP Fanboy reader, wrote in our comments section: "It is something nobody has done before (as far as I know)... I think people are jaded about any game being about Hip Hop... but at least I do know that there are people who do make the genre respectable."Very true, Marco. It's pretty easy to get jaded over games that don't seem authentic, but B-Boy seems to be the real deal. It's a game that deserves a bit more attention than it's getting, if only for its unique premise: you play as a rising star of break-dancing, and you battle other b-boys to try and become the best. It looks pretty new and different, and according to IGN, it "doesn't play quite like anything that's come before." The D-Pad controls movement, and the face buttons are used as the building blocks of moves. You string things together, and maintain balance using the L and R buttons a la Tony Hawk. There are transition moves, and increasingly complicated moves which require greater button combinations, and that's where a surprising amount of depth can come into play. Like extreme sports games, you can build up some impressive combos.B-Boy promises to mix music rhythm and sports gameplay into an innovative combination. The game is currently UK-exclusive, but hopefully we'll see it branching out soon.
B-Boy's bustin' website
The last time PSP Fanboy covered B-Boy, Rafael was a bit cynical about the game, thinking it was driven solely by marketing towards the street crowd. This break dancing battle game has you stringing together combinations of acrobatic moves, and (as a New Yorker) I'm really excited about this game. I don't think I really remember seeing a game ever embrace this culture like this one. SCEE has started up a new website outlining the inspiration for the game and gives you a bit of insight into the culture that the game is trying to represent. You'll get some downloads, listen to some good music, and find game footage. What's not to like? Hopefully, SCEA will pick up this game for release outside of Europe as well.[Via PSPro]
