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Bit. Trip Beat descends to .99 price on iPhone and iPad this weekend
Bit. Trip Beat may not be easy, but this weekend, it's going to be really easy to buy. Publisher Namco has marked down both the iPhone and iPad versions of the WiiWare hit to 99 cents for the weekend. Sure, it's portable, but play it at home -- you don't want strangers to see you having a tantrum.
Gaijin Games expects Bit. Trip Fate to be out on Oct. 18
When asked by Nintendo Life to comment about the early release of Bit.Trip Fate's soundtrack (CDBaby, $6), Gaijin Games' Alex Neuse also offered a probable release date for the WiiWare game itself. "We don't have the final release date for Bit. Trip Fate just yet," Neuse said, "but if I were a betting man, I'd put my potato chips on Oct. 18 for a North American release. Or thereabouts." As for that early soundtrack release: it was intentional, done partially "because we'd never done it that way before!" and because it was designed to help players "[build] a relationship with the more somber, darker theme."%Gallery-101433%
Bit.Trip Beat hits iPhone, iPad on Sept. 30
The long anticipated release of Gaijin Games' Bit.Trip Beat on the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch is this Thursday, September 30. The glowing-finger-enabled dev Alex Neuse (seen above) announced as much with a toothy grin via the Gaijin blog this afternoon -- he later told us via email that the game will run $4.99 on iPhone/iPod Touch and $6.99 on iPad. Additionally, DLC will be available on day one, as will Game Center support. Aside from new levels and an HD up-res of the graphics, the game will also be getting multiplayer support on iPhone/iPad. Take a peek at the gallery below and join us in rapt anticipation for Thursday morning, won't you?%Gallery-101131%
Bit.Trip Beat iPad preview: move to keep the beat
The problem I've always had with Bit.Trip Beat is that you could only control it by twisting the Wiimote. It's not the most accurate control scheme and, since the game is largely built on the player's ability to quickly and precisely move from one place to another, it was one tough experience. However, on the iPad, it's far more responsive -- sporting both touch-based and tilt-based controls in the final product, it was quickly evident that this was the best way to play the game. %Gallery-101131%
Lilt Line preview: Stay between the lines
You know those Highlights magazines and coloring books you used to doodle in as a kid? Imagine your life depended on your ability to stay within the lines, only your arm had a mind of its own and the image you were coloring is constantly changing as you try to color it. Yeah, we had the same nightmare as kids ... and also, that's pretty much Lilt Line on Wii, the first game to be published – as opposed to developed – by Gaijin Games, the predominantly WiiWare dev studio behind the Bit.Trip series.
Bit.Trip Beat DLC on iPhone/iPad will be Bit.Trip Void tracks
You know how we told you about DLC for the iPhone and iPad versions of Bit.Trip Beat a few days back? During an appointment with developer Gaijin Games here at PAX, CEO and designer Alex Neuse confirmed the exact nature of the DLC tracks: they're Bit.Trip Void songs! He informed Joystiq that the tracks weren't actually being developed by Gaijin Games, but were instead being crafted by the iPhone/iPad version's publisher, Namco-Bandai. Neuse is looking forward to trying the new tracks, as you'd imagine -- it's not every day you have an opportunity to be stumped by your own game, you know? %Gallery-101131%
Bit.Trip Fate is an on-rails shmup, Super Meat Boy to make guest appearance
Other than a teaser image and a fall release window, we've heard little to nothing on the next Bit.Trip title from Gaijin Games, Fate. That all changed this past week with the reveal of the game's premise and its first gameplay trailer on the developer's website. Fate will have players controlling CommanderVideo along a guided path (in 2D), aiming and firing his various weapons by pointing the Wiimote at the screen. The game also features "appearances from Super Meat Boy and Mr. Robotube," as well as a kickin' dubstep soundtrack that, frankly, we've been jamming too since we first found out about. Bit.Trip Fate may not be out until sometime this fall, but you can pick up its jams right now.%Gallery-101433%
Look and listen: Lilt Line for WiiWare in motion
Gaijin Games (of Bit.Trip fame) announced during GDC that it is was bringing Different Cloth's award-winning inside music game, Lilt Line, to WiiWare. The first video of the port in action is out -- which looks and sounds just like the iPhone original (i.e, great.) Now all we need is a date!
iPhone Bit.Trip Beat has new levels, multiplayer
The iOS version of Bit.Trip Beat won't be a simple port of Gaijin Games' WiiWare debut. It has a couple of new features that may convince even the few people who completed the game to buy it again. A representative for publisher Namco Networks informed Joystiq that Bit.Trip Beat will have a multiplayer mode, for up to four players on either iPhones or iPads. Even more intriguing, the mobile version of the chiptuney rhythm-Pong game will have new downloadable levels. Namco Networks expects to release Bit.Trip Beat this fall. You can see what it looks like on iPad in our gallery. If you look at the images on an iPad, you'll really get the idea.%Gallery-101131%
Gaijin Games teases Bit.Trip Fate, coming to WiiWare this fall
Put your thinking caps on, friends -- it's time to get to work on dissecting the image seen above. The photo in question was recently emailed to fans of indie dev Gaijin Games as a teaser for the next entry in its musically-inclined series, Bit.Trip Fate. The email accompanying the image included a challenge from Gaijin, who stated "the discerning BIT.TRIPPER will be able to figure it all out." We consider ourselves pretty hardcore fans of the franchise, and, wow, we have absolutely no idea what's going on up there. The game's official site mentions the title will receive a WiiWare release sometime this fall, so less cryptic information on Fate should surface soon. In the mean time, we're just going to assume it's a game about a snake made of light which likes to eat lava.
Bit.Trip Runner original soundtrack now on sale
At long last, the ever-catchy background bleeps and bloops of Bit.Trip Runner can now be listened to from the safety and comfort of your music-listening device of preference. The mostly original soundtrack for the game (two songs were contributed by the chiptune virtuosos of Anamanaguchi) is now available to purchase from CDBaby.com for $6. We definitely think it could make for some soothing ambient music to accompany your daily aromatherapy sessions -- that is, as long as each square wave doesn't fill you with haunting flashbacks of that one fireball that ruined your perfect run.
Gaijin Games 'can't wait' to work on Bit.Trip.Runner for 3DS
Did you know that quite a few developers are working on games for the Nintendo 3DS? It's true! Here's this enormous list of games if you don't believe us. Not on that list, however, is Bit.Trip series developer Gaijin Games. That said, in a recent interview with Gamasutra, Nintendo executive VP of sales and marketing Cammie Dunaway said that the studio "can't wait" to start working on bringing Bit.Trip.Runner to the 3DS. Just think about it: colors, explosions and music all working in tandem -- but in three dimensions! All kidding aside, the idea of Bit.Trip.Runner on the 3DS sounds like pure insanity. Pure, wonderful insanity.
Interview: Alex Neuse of Gaijin Games
A Bit.Trip-themed party at LA's GR2 gallery/store served as an E3 kickoff of sorts for us, as we prepared to be dazzled by new games with a night of dazzling Bit.Trip games projected on the walls outside the store. Gaijin Games CEO Alex Neuse took a break from watching attendees' minds be blown by the magnificence of gigantic Bit.Trip Runner to speak to Joystiq about the future of the Bit.Trip series, the successs of Runner, and being in awe of Tetsuya Mizuguchi. A note: the wink at the end will make more sense after you read that Gaijin announced an iPhone version of Bit.Trip Beat two days after we conducted this interview. Joystiq: How's the party going? Alex Neuse, Gaijin Games: The party's pretty fun! It kinda started off slow, and I thought maybe no one's going to come, but now it's filled out and I couldn't be happier. I really like playing the games all big on the buildings, but the most fun for me is talking to fans of the series and to see how much they really care for it. I'd say it's going really well tonight. Are the games any easier on the big screen? Man, I wonder. You know, they might be. They just might be. But they're harder with a crowd of people pressuring you to beat the boss of level 1 in Runner.
Bit.Trip Beat bouncing to iPhone
Gaijin Games' retro-synaesthetic Bit.Trip series is no longer a WiiWare exclusive. The developer announced that it has partnered with Namco Bandai to release an iPhone and iPad version of Bit.Trip Beat. It seems likely that the iPhone game will employ the tilt controls used to move the paddle in the Wii version, but that wasn't detailed in the brief, enthusiastic announcement -- and neither was a release date. We're checking with Gaijin Games to see when you'll be able to fail repeatedly to complete stage 2 on the go.
Review: Bit.Trip Runner
Bit.Trip Runner is profoundly difficult, as anyone who has played a previous Bit.Trip game would guess. It's probably one of the hardest games I've ever played, and in a way that most developers don't dare to make their games. Basically, if you already have high blood pressure or a short fuse, you should stay far away from Bit.Trip Runner. And if you don't, you should wear the Wii wrist strap while playing. Not because it uses motion controls, but because you'll occasionally get the impulse to throw something. If that doesn't scare you off -- if you welcome the challenge, or are a patient person in general, perhaps with access to the occasional cup of soothing tea -- then you'd do well to try out Gaijin Games' rhythmic, nostalgic version of the side-scrolling platformer.
Take your wall on a Bit.Trip with vinyl wall graphics
Are you enjoying this week's WiiWare release, Bit.Trip Runner? Would you like it even more if it were non-interactive, huge, and stuck to your wall? LTL Prints, who offers vinyl wall graphics based on Jet Set Radio Future, Dragon's Lair, Super Meat Boy and more, is now selling a line based on the Bit.Trip series and Gaijin Games' iconic, blocky Commander Video character. The vinyl prints range from the easily recognizable (Commander Video himself) to the abstract (a set of rectangular "beats" as seen in Bit.Trip Beat, and simple icons representing the first three games). The prints come in a variety of sizes, from one foot long ("laptop size") up to seven, so finding space for some Bit.Trip artwork is significantly easier than beating a Bit.Trip game.
NintendoWare Weekly: Bit.Trip Runner, Looksley's Line Up, Kirby Super Star
It's quite the week for the DSi and Wii as far as downloadables go -- Bit.Trip Runner arrives on WiiWare today and EA, Tecmo Koei and Konami all offer solid titles for DSiWare. Oh, and you can finally get your hands on Looksley's Line Up, the interesting 3D DSiWare game from Nintendo. There's even a new Virtual Console game starring a certain hungry pink blob to check out!
European Nintendo downloads: Bit.Trip Runner, Ghoul Patrol
The fourth game in Gaijin Games' retro-esque, musical Bit.Trip series arrives in Europe today, three days before Commander Video runs across the Atlantic Ocean. Should your tastes run more toward shooting than running, you can play Ghoul Patrol, the second game about zombies having eaten someone's neighbors. DSiWare is packed with stuff, including EnjoyUp's original DS version of Chronos Twins and a time-management game about fire trucks. Ghoul Patrol (SNES, 1-2 players, 800 Wii Points) Bit.Trip Runner (WiiWare, 1 player, 800 Wii Points) AiRace (DSiWare, 1-6 players, 500 DSi Points) Brain Drain (DSiWare, 1 player, 500 DSi Points) Chronos Twins (DSiWare, 1 player, 500 DSi Points) Fire Panic (DSiWare, 1 player, 200 DSi Points) Sudoku Challenge! (DSiWare, 1 player, 500 DSi Points)
Run to your printer for Bit.Trip Runner papercraft
Gaijin Games and Paper Foldables have provided us with an activity with which we can keep busy while waiting for the May 17 release of Bit.Trip: Runner. In anticipation of the chiptune-soaked, sidescrolling action game starring Commander Video, Gaijin posted the template for this papercraft Runner diorama. If you throw it across the room, it'll kind of look like the game in motion! But there's no way we'd ever do that after spending hours meticulously cutting, folding, and gluing this model together. In fact, we're just going to get some of that puzzle glue to drench this with. If you like building papercraft Bit.Trip models, there's a Commander Video, too, also created by Paper Foldables.
Bit. Trip Runner crosses the finish line in Europe first
Bit.Trip Beat hit Europe a month after it arrived in North America, as did Core. Void was almost three months behind. However, European Wii owners won't have to wait in agony while the western hemisphere enjoys Bit.Trip Runner. In a brief announcement, Gaijin Games revealed that the chiptune-filled rhythm platformer will be released in Europe in Australia on May 14, three days before it arrives in North America. To help you decide whether or not this is welcome news, we've embedded the trailer. You'll find this out when you watch, but spoiler alert: yes, this is probably great news if you're a PAL gamer.
