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November's Games with Gold: Volgarr the Viking, Viva Pinata
Microsoft has announced next month's Games with Gold lineup, revealing that the Rastan-like barbaric side-scroller Volgarr the Viking will debut for the Xbox One as a free download for Xbox Live Gold subscribers. Members will also receive a free copy of Rare's Xbox 360 Viva Pinata sequel Trouble in Paradise starting on November 1, and Volition's havoc-raising third-person shooter Red Faction: Guerrilla will join the program on November 16. [Image: Crazy Viking Studios]
How Viva Pinata's Choclodocus was reverse engineered
You could be forgiven for not staying abreast of news related to the now year-and-a-half-old Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise. Heck, we're almost kind of relieved; you have no idea what a hassle it is to dig our "Ñ" key out of the storage shed. But scattered across the globe is a resolute fan base that's unwilling to let the game drift off to the Great Piñata Garden in the Sky. When developer Rare ran out of the Piñata Vision barcodes that injected new creatures and items into the game, the PinataIsland.info community sprung into action. Here, community admin Jim McQuillan tells it better than us: "Our members noticed that there were still of Piñata Vision cards that weren't available such as the Choclodocus, the big daddy of all piñatas. These members reverse engineered the barcodes on the Piñata Vision cards to discover how they worked. By comparing different species of pinatas and attempting to fill in the gaps in the barcode of the choclodocus, they eventually found success! In simple terms you can think of this like Jurassic Park where they took the dinosaur DNA and mixed it the DNA from other species of animals to fill in the gaps. It's just that our dinosaur happens to be a Choclodocus pinata instead." Finally, the fruits of their labor, the Choclodocus Egg Pinata Vision Card, is available for your enjoyment. Just don't tell piñata Jeff Goldblum what they've wrought.
Rare expresses its Valentine's love with new TIP cards
Being the season of love, one of our countless admirers, developer Rare, sent over a set of scan-friendly Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise Valentine's cards, including three new Killer Instinct characters for your collection. You can view all four new trading cards in the gallery below. Using your handy Vision camera, scan the bar code into Trouble in Paradise, then behold the magic that takes place. Warning: We have yet to scan any of the cards, so if you have an urge to invest in Ultratech or experience an unshakable infatuation with all Rare products, please, don't send your lawyers after us. Gallery: Rare Valentine's Day Cards
High calorie Banjo-Kazooie and Viva Pinata cakes
Looking for a festive and fun video game themed cakes to consume or just admire? Look no further than Washington based Cake Fixation, the creators of both the Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise and Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts themed cakes you see above. Note the attention to detail, expert use of royal icing and all those yellow cutout jiggies. And that Horstachio, it's pure edible genius! [Thanks, James C.]
Viva Pinata gets photoshopped, parodies Hollywood
What's better than a cute, cuddly and candy filled Viva Pinata pinata? Easy. A cute, cuddly and candy filled Viva Pinata pinata acting out scenes from famous movies, which is exactly the treat we've been given today. The Rare crew has been feeling extra creative lately (as evident by their lovely holiday card) and decided to put their photoshopping skills to good use by plopping pinatas into famous movie scenes. Check the gallery below to see if you can name which movies the pinatas are acting out.Pro tip: King Kong and Saturday Night Fever are two of the scenes.%Gallery-39461%
Have a Jukebox for your Viva Pinata garden
Rare has a pretty neat promotion lined up for the holidays this year. First, the company is offering Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise players a new jukebox to decorate their in-game gardens. To grab the jukebox, simply scan the Piñata Vision Card found after the break. Of course, the jukebox isn't just for decoration. From now until December 10, Piñata Island will be conducting a poll to uncover the top 10 romance dance songs. Once the songs are decided, Rare will release one a day as special Piñata Vision Cards. Don't worry if a jukebox isn't your thing, as Rare will be releasing other special cards throughout December.
It's a Halloween themed Viva Pinata card
Halloween is almost upon us and in the land of candy-filled piñatas, they're celebrating. Piñatas are celebrating, because Halloween is the only day children opt to go door to door to get their sweets rather than beating defenseless piñata bodies. To show their celebratory support of Halloween and the preservation of the piñata species, team Rare just released a Halloween themed piñata card that can be scanned into Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise using the Vision camera. Though, we've been warned that scanning of this card should only be done on Halloween day for a special surprise. No sooner, no later. You've been warned.
Viva Killer Instinct, special cards include nostalgia
There's nothing better than a Rare treat, is there? Rare has released three special cards to be scanned into Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise that promise "a suitable Pinata approximation of whatever is pictured." The three items pictured? Killer Instinct characters Fulgore, B. Orchid and Tusk. To access the KI pinatas, print out the cards and hold them up to your vision camera.Let's not jump the gun and think this means a new KI is on the way, kids. Rare has mentioned they don't want to go to the IP Well before -- so, I guess that means they're filthy, filthy teases. Gallery: Viva Pinata TIP Killer Instinct cards
Viva the Trouble in Paradise and NBA 2K9 demos
There are metric ton of titles coming out in the next few months but there have been titles released recently that warrant your attention too. Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise may seem like a revamped version of the original but with so many additions it's hard to call it Viva Pinata 1.5. Still on the fence? Check out the demo, now available on the Xbox Live Marketplace.Sports fan? Also available on the Xbox Live Marketplace is a demo for the upcoming 2K Sports pro basketball entry, NBA 2K9. Play one 4-minute quarter as the Lakers or the Celtics in a demo that relives the first part of Game 6 from the 2008 playoffs. Not sure who to pick? The answer is the Celtics, it's always the Celtics.
Metareview -- Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise
In the terrible glut expected this holiday season, it's good to see Microsoft and Rare bringing a piñata to the party. According to reviews, Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise doesn't seem to bring anything radically new to the fiesta, but it does make significant improvements to the formula introduced in the original. If you didn't like the original, it appears you can just move on. But, if you found the sweet candy fix of Viva Piñata addictive the first time, it looks like you'll be in for another treat. 1Up (A): "If you hated the original, Trouble in Paradise isn't going to change your opinion. If, however, you somehow missed out completely on the piñata party the first time around, I implore you to check it out now -- it's certainly much deeper and more addictive than its playful visuals would lead you to believe." Game Informer (83/100): "Keeping your piñatas happy can still be monotonous in task, but the expanded content and finely made multiplayer relieves some of the repetition that plagued the first game. Viva Piñata retains its child-like charm, but the content is layered with deep strategies and entertaining gameplay that can suck anyone's life away." GamePro (80/100): "There are also some minor additions that attempt to sweeten the pot but they don't add too much. The new trick stick, which allows you to teach pinata tricks, and a wide range of toys are fun to play with, though. There's also support for the Xbox Live Vision camera which allows you to scan in special pinata cards, but it's a gimmick at best. Still, despite some irritating design elements, Trouble in Paradise is a fun game that retains the charm of the first Viva Pinata." GameDaily (80/100): "Rare could've easily slapped a couple of minor changes into this game and given us an expansion pack. Instead, Viva Pinata: Trouble In Paradise offers enough to make it a worthy sequel. It'll be a little too cute for some, but others will see past the adorable exterior and find the delicious treats inside, just like a real pinata." %Gallery-22744%
Rare says no to Viva Pinata 2 DLC, yes to 'something new'
In a recent live chat with Rare devotees, Rare's Justin Cook made it clear that there are no plans for any Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise downloadable content. Furthermore, Cook says that Rare is "taking a break" from the Viva Piñata franchise in order to "make something new." Just what this something new is, Cook failed to elaborate. The "new" part makes us suspect it won't be a return to Rare's other franchises like Perfect Dark or Kameo, but there's no way to be sure. Cook added that even Rare's plans regarding another Viva Piñata could change, so we'll just have to wait and see. Still, is it too much to ask for a new Battletoads? Be sure to hit the source link to read the whole chat. It covers plenty of nitty-gritty details in VP2. [Via Joystiq]
Video: Making of the Viva Pinata BelieVe videos
Some of you may have had your fill of the Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise BelieVe video series, which is sorta understandable. But, being the hardcore Viva Piñata fanboys that we are, we can never have enough. That's why when we came across the latest BelieVe video, we had no doubt in our minds that we wanted to share it. Though, in all actuality, it isn't a new video, it's more of a "making of" behind the scenes look at how the videos were created. Simply put, to create a Viva Piñata BelieVe video all you need is a few BK toys, some chicken wire, newspaper, boxes, styrofoam and a healthy dose of creativity. And it's that creativity bit that gets us every time.
Viva Pinata 2 demo in certification, releasing soon
In an interview with Eurogamer, Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise lead programmer Will Bryan confirmed details regarding a Trouble in Paradise demo releasing to the Xbox Live Marketplace saying that it will release "as soon as possible." According to Bryan, the demo is finished and is currently in the hands of Microsoft's certification team. Then, once it's approved by cert, it will be released to the Xbox Live masses. As far as demo specifics go, we're being told that it'll include 25 minutes of gameplay from the core game including a few Live features and the "Just For Fun" game mode. Sadly, the demo will not include any co-op support, local or Live, so we'll just have to imagine playing with three other piñata gardeners. Imagination FTW! %Gallery-22615%
Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise to allow four player co-op garden editing over Xbox Live
The obsession began as most obsessions do -- with a simple observation. Perhaps it was the perfectly arranged row of tulips, or the masterfully grown monkeynut trees. Perhaps it was the stunning flock of Chewnicorn that resided in that breathtaking place. One is never sure of how or why these feeling develop, but the end result is always the same -- your neighbor's piñata garden is too beautiful to exist, and has to be razed. It must be returned to the loam from whence it sprung, its candy-filled inhabitants scattered to the sweet-smelling wind. Fortunately, word from Rare confirms that in addition to a slew of races and other contests, Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise will indeed feature a four player co-op mode over Xbox Live, in which three players can enter and "edit" the host's garden. Players will have access to all the tools afforded them in the single-player mode, meaning you can use your trusty multi-purpose shovel to wreak a path of destruction through a friend's garden, carving a scar into its well-tended landscape. Or you could help them out, we guess. We're not really sure why anyone would want to do that, though.
Viva Pinata 2's four player co-op isn't gimped!
As was semi confirmed via some leaky achievements, Rare has informed us that four player online co-op will be a part of Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise and (best part) it won't be gimped! Just like local co-op, four player online co-op will allow players to join the "host" in their garden and only their garden. Meaning that everyone who enters the a garden will only make changes or do damage to the host's garden while having no effect on their game saves. All four players will have the ability to interact with the garden and have access to normal player tools. Simply put, there's no co-op gimpage! Not only will players be able to visit and play in eachother's gardens, but everyone can partake in 2D top down races, competitions and win monthly leaderboard prizes. It's like the online Viva Piñata experience we've always wanted! Also, we've been told to expect much more Trouble in Paradise info (including more co-op specifics) to be released during Leipzig, so keep your eyes peeled. To recap: Trouble in Paradise will sport local AND four player Xbox Live co-op where players can interact with and edit the host's garden with access to all normal in-game tools. Yup, we like! %Gallery-22615%
Rare settles on Viva: Pocket release and a new BelieVe trailer too
Rare just sent word (via express pigeon airmail, no less) that the Nintendo DS edition Viva Piñata: Pocket Paradise has been given a release date that should be familiar to all Viva Piñata fans. As it stands, Pocket Paradise will release to the United States on September 2nd and in Europe on September 5th, which is the exact release date for the 360's Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise. Speaking of which, Rare today also announced that Trouble in Paradise has gone gold and is currently being pressed to disc on some manufacturing line in Mexico.Hold on, that's not all. Rare released a second Halo 3 inspired Viva Piñata BelieVe trailer titled "Museum" and we're told it was done by the voice actor for Leafos herself! Oh, how we love these BelieVe trailers ... just watch and have a good belly laugh. Har, har!
Video: Trapping pinatas in Viva Pinata 2
Brand new Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise media released earlier today showing off some gameplay and how much the game looks, plays and feels just like the original Viva Pinata. Not that that is a bad thing, really, it's just an observation. Though, we can't help but say it mirrors its predecessor in every way, but is more refined, perfected and feature-rich. In other words, it's what Viva Piñata should have been, four player online co-op and all. Give the videos (one embedded after the break) a watch, take in all the piñata love and see how to trap pinatas. Yup, in Viva 2 you can box up those piñatas who are unlucky enough to be attracted to your garden by a vegetable. How devilish!
Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise parties with four player online co-op
If those pesky Achievements for the game are to be believed, Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise will support four player online co-op. 360sync.com lists all the "bleep bloops" for the upcoming candy-filled animal simulator and one 10-point achievement, named "Full House," comes with with the description: Play 4 Player Online Co-op for 1 hour. We're still not exactly sure what co-op entails, as there also Achievements listed for playing two player co-op, both online and off, for one hour. We should get more details soon before VP: TiP starts getting whacked at retail on Sept. 2. [Via X3F]
Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise, now sporting 4 player ONLINE co-op
The achievements for Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise have just made their way onto the interwebs and among the traditional gardening achievements we spotted an extremely interesting and feature revealing "Full House" achievement. This 10 Gamerscore earning "Full House" achievement pretty much confirms co-op details we never knew about Trouble in Paradise, reading "Play 4 Player Online Co-op for 1 hour". That's right, the once thought to be only two player local co-op Trouble in Paradise will now sport four player online co-op! That is, if the achievements can be trusted. We already have our Vision camera warmed up and ready to go, bring on the four player online piñata fun!
First Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise 'Vision Card' up for download
The festivities on Piñata Island won't get into full swing until Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise hits shelves on September 2, but that's not stopping Rare from handing out an early party favor. As we reported back in May, the game will use the Xbox Live Vision camera to "scan" physical cards – similar to Sony's Eye of Judgment – that unlock items, change the in-game weather, etc. The first of these cards is now up on MundoRare, featuring a curious critter created by VP2 designer Ray Stevenson. Clicking on the card image above will take you to a full-sized version that can be printed out and tucked safely away until the game streets. The rest of the dev team is also crafting cards that will surely pop up online closer to launch. Speaking of making cards, you'll be able to do the same simply by snapping photos of items and piñatas in your garden via an in-game camera. They can then be emailed to friends, who can print them out and hold them up to their Vision cameras, thus completing the circle of life.
