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Microsoft abruptly removes Ascend: Hand of Kul from Xbox 360
Free-to-play action-RPG Ascend: Hand of Kul is no longer available on the Xbox 360 after Microsoft discontinued it this week, apparently without informing developer Signal Studios beforehand. In what's seemingly less a case of "So long, farewell" and more Jazzy Jeff leaving the Fresh Prince's house, Signal Studios said the news only surfaced when the team was investigating player troubles from the weekend. "We are deeply saddened by this decision and the impact it has on our community," Signal Studios said on its site while urging players towards the Steam version released in May. The studio didn't note what Microsoft's reasoning was behind the decision, and when we approached the publisher a spokesperson told us Microsoft had "no further comment."
PSA: Battleblock Theater now available on Games with Gold
Made by the creators of Castle Crashers, Battleblock Theater was a game that caught our attention last year. The multiplayer puzzle-platformer/brawler combined great things like evil cats, a snarky and sinister narrator, and the opportunity to kill friends over and over. If you didn't experience it last year and you're an Xbox Live Gold member, you can rectify that by acquiring Battleblock Theater at no extra cost. The game's just replaced Gotham City Impostors on Xbox's Games with Gold program, and so it'll stay free to Gold members until the end of the month. To grab it, head on over to the Xbox Games Store.
Report: TMNT - Training Lair has Kinect ninja skills, Pizza Hut boxes
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Training Lair features heroes-in-a-half-shell with Kinect power, according to recently published box art and achievements. Xbox Achievements (formerly Xbox 360 Achievements) published the cheevos and Kinect-tabbed box art this week, and it noted the publisher of the motion-controlled Xbox 360 game as Activision. The company does hold the TMNT games license, but it hasn't announced the game as yet, and there's no sign of it on any official Xbox listings. We've reached out to Activision to see if we can lure more info out of its shell.
Xbox 360 strums a tooie-in-one Banjo bundle, available now
It's been a while since the last bundle on the Xbox 360 store, but it looks like Microsoft's found the duct tape again. Rare-developed platformers Banjo Kazooie and Banjo Tooei are newly stuck together in a 2-in-1 bundle, and you can grab it now for $15 or £12/15 euros. The two N64 games were released on Xbox Live five years ago, and Rarely seem to make their way onto sales. So, what's effectively a half-price bundle is perhaps a decent deal if you've yet to check them out. After all, Banjo Kazooie and Tooie are widely regarded as two of the strongest early examples of 3D platforming. Also, it's not like you're going to get that Banjo Kazooie spiritual successor anytime soon... [Image: Microsoft]
ID@Xbox games Contrast, Another World roll onto Xbox One
Classic platformer Another World and noir puzzler Contrast are two of four new ID@Xbox entrants to graduate onto the Xbox One store. The two other self-published games, Zombie Driver and RBI Baseball, were released earlier in the week. If you've seen Another World pop up a whole lot recently, that's because the cinematic 1991 adventure is celebrating turning 23 by bringing its 20th anniversary edition (yup) to every new system in town. Well, not quite every system... the PS4 port was due this week, then Sony amended its announcement, stating the game doesn't yet have a release date in North America [Thanks, Josh]. The PS4 game is out in Europe, though. Anyway, back to the Xbox One where Another World is available now for $8/£6.39. Contrast is due to drop sometime today, priced at $15/£12. [Image: Microsoft]
Zombie Driver returns in Xbox One 'Ultimate Edition,' out now
Out of nowhere, Zombie Driver crept onto the Xbox One Games Store this morning in a new Ultimate Edition, and it's available now for $15/£12. The vehicular combat game launched on PC before coming to consoles in 2012, but it was delisted on Xbox 360 earlier this year after publisher Cyberfront went bankrupt. At the time, dev Exor Studios said it was looking into self-publishing on Xbox One via the ID@Xbox program. After that there was silence, but like an undead wrongly presumed to be finished off, Zombie Driver ambushed us unawares today. According to the store description, the game's Ultimate Edition is "specially improved" and exclusive to Xbox One. While Exor says it's bumped up the game to 1080p at 60 frames per second, the tweaks aren't limited to graphics. The Ultimate Edition promises twice as many zombies on the streets, more weapons to take them down with, and a new top-down "Retro" camera. Also, it comes with all previous DLC released for other platforms. [Image: Microsoft]
Xbox One seeks asylum, Outlast available now with DLC
Xbox One players can book some time at the Mount Massive Asylum, now that Outlast has made the jump from PS4 and PC to the Microsoft system. Red Barrels' mentally ill horror is $20/£16 on the Xbox One store, while its Whistleblower DLC is also available for $9/£7.19. As our review explains, Outlast's DLC picks up where the main game left off, i.e. with your heartbeat pounding. "Everything in Whistleblower is turned up to 11," Joystiq's Jess Conditt screamed as she sprinted down the hallway, "the blood, the twisting layout of the building, the number of bodies hanging from the rafters, the nudity and the sexual exploits of the patients of Mount Massive Asylum." If you yet to complete the game, you really should. After all, nice guys finish Outlast*. [Image: Microsoft] *we regret nothing
Max: The Curse of Brotherhood meets its marker on 360, PC
After quietly missing its April release dates, Max: The Curse of Brotherhood is out today on Xbox 360 and PC. The young scamp and his enchanted crayon first returned to our screens on Xbox One last year, but you can now grab the puzzle-platformer for $15 on Xbox 360, or £12/15 euros in Europe - the Steam release should hit later today at the same price. Like Magic Marker, The Curse of Brotherhood has you doodling things in the environment to help Max progress. The next game from Danish studio Press Play is another colorful platformer with a twist, but it looks a fair bit different to the Max games. Instead. Project Totem tasks you with controlling two totem pieces with a single controller, and it sounds like it'll be a challenging proposition for Xbox One and 360 owners when it hits this fall. [Image: Press Play]
Score FIFA 14 for $36 in this week's Xbox Deals
With the World Cup 22 days away, Xbox is getting into the festival mood with a 40 percent sale on FIFA 14 for Xbox One and 360 - that's right, not the World Cup game that just came out. That discount takes the sportsballer down to $36 (£30/42 euros), and as with all of this week's deals, that price stays good until Monday, May 26. If you prefer your contact sports with more bloodshed, the Killer Instinct Ultra Edition is 50 percent off for Combo Break owners, and 12 percent off for everyone else. While the base game is free, the Ultra Edition adds all Season 1 characters, costumes and accessories as well as the classic arcade game from the 90s. Finally, Bandai Namco has a selection of Xbox 360 games on sale that includes musically classic RPG Eternal Sonata for just over $5, the offline-playable Soul Calibur 2 HD for $10, and the Serkis-enhanced Enslaved for around $5 too. For the full list of games and their discounts, hop on over to Major Nelson's. [Image: EA]
Tomb Raider, Lightning Returns in Square Enix's Xbox sale
Square Enix has discounts on ten Xbox 360 games in the week it turned losses into profits. The games stay on sale until May 19, as do another 8 Xbox 360 games including Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare. PopCap's horticultural hostility is also discounted on Xbox One, where it's down by 25 percent to $30/£26. As for the Xbox 360 sale, highlights include State of Decay for $10 (£6.74/9.49 euros), Tomb Raider at $13.49 (£9/18 euros), Lightning Returns for $30 (£20/30 euros), and Thief at $45 (£30/45 euros). For the full list of games and discounts, head on over to Major Nelson's. [Image: Square Enix]
ID@Xbox trailblazer Nutjitsu hits Xbox One
Nutjitsu is the second ID@XBox game to make it onto Xbox One, and you can grab the self-published offering now for $6.49. Developed by Keflings studio Ninjabee, the game's a top-down stealth puzzler in which you use ninja wiles to squirrel your way around samurai fox guards. Ninjabee released it on Windows Phone 8 last year, and this week's arrival on Xbox One represents its console debut. April saw the ID@Xbox program pump out its first game in Strike Suit Zero: Director's Cut. To name a few, other games on the way include Super Time Force - that's out next week - Guacamelee: Super Turbo CE, Divekick: Addition Edition, 1001 Spikes and Roundabout. [Image: Ninjabee]
Bound by Flame launch trailer takes us through the ire and maims
Bound by Flame is the latest, hottest new thing from Mars: War Logs and Of Orcs and Men developer Spiders, and a launch trailer heralds its arrival on PC and consoles this week. It's a combat-heavy action-RPG that pits players as a mercenary who gets possessed by a demon. The evil spirit bestows the unwitting soldier with special powers, like being able to wield a flaming sword at will - always handy. That's all well and good, but the demon also wants its influence to be total. It's up to players to choose by their actions whether to stay good and heroic, or to succumb to the evil within and let things get decidedly fiery. As for the combat, it's spread across two disciplines that the player can switch between on the fly, namely Warrior and Ranger. The Warrior is all about big, heavy two-handed attacks that deal high damage, while the Ranger is more fleet-footed with dual-wield daggers and stealth abilities. Thanks to the demon, players can supplement both methods of attack with pyromancer abilities, spanning from the burning blade to hurling great big fireballs about. Bound by Flame launches on PS4, PS3, Xbox 360 and PC on Friday, May 9. [Image: Focus Home Interactive]
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 on Xbox One Store at launch after all
It's surprising, perhaps even amazing: The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is currently listed as releasing today on the Xbox One Store in the US, despite Activision's dithering and seeming postponement two weeks ago. Beenox's adventure is on the Xbox Games Store priced $60, and some players have apparently already purchased, downloaded and started playing it on Xbox One. We've reached out to Activision to clarify what's going on. The Amazing Spider-Man 2's arrival on Xbox One was, much like Peter Parker, up in the air after Activision wouldn't commit to the game being on the system at launch. "We are working with Microsoft in an effort to release The Amazing Spider-Man 2 video game on Xbox One," the publisher told Joystiq in a statement on April 17. "Currently, the game will be available on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii U, Nintendo 3DS and the PC on April 29, 2014 as previously announced." It's a curious situation: There's been no official word from Activision yet about the Xbox One version releasing today, and Xbox One boxes and logos remain unseen on the game's official site. Meanwhile, retailers Amazon and GameStop have it listed to release on July 1. [Thanks, StrmOfConscious] [Image: Activision-Blizzard]
Magic 2015 deals in Xbox One, out in the summer
This summer, Magic 2015: Duels of the Planeswalkers brings the collectible card game series to Xbox One for the first time, but it looks like the game isn't coming to PlayStation platforms in the near future. Wizards of the Coast announced Magic 2015 for Xbox One, Xbox 360, Steam, iPad, Android and Kindle, with PS3 and PS4 conspicuously absent from the deck; previously editions have traditionally come to PS3 at launch. As for the summer due date, that's only specified for Xbox One, and Wizards of the Coast notes its releases may vary from platform to platform. Talking of decks, you'll be able to build customized ones in Magic 2015, and Wizards of the Coast promises "more robust" deck-building features to boot. Meanwhile, the story pits players as the prey of primal hunter and generally deadly dude Garruk Wildspeaker. Of course, we might be seeing Magic: The Gathering on bigger screens in the future, after 20th Century Fox's purchase of the series' screen rights earlier this year. We look forward to the inevitable video game based on the collectible card game based on the movie based on the collectible card game. [Image: Wizards of the Coast]
Warface primed for full launch on Xbox 360 later this month
On April 22, you can demand your Xbox 360 to give you the best wide-eyed, high-decibel cry of Warface it can, because that's when Crytek's free-to-play shooter launches in full. Warface is the first game from Crytek Kiev, and it first arrived on Windows PC last year. This month's transfer to Xbox 360 signals its debut on a home console. Warface uses CryEngine 3, as per Crysis 3 and Ryse, and it offers online military melee in co-op and player-vs-player flavors. Just a reminder: While the game itself is free-to-play, you'll need an Xbox Live Gold account to access it. [Image: Crytek]
Delayed Battlefield 4 'Naval Strike' DLC rolling out on Xbox One
The Battlefield 4 'Naval Strike' DLC is sailing towards Premium members on Xbox One after DICE delayed it earlier in the week to address animation issues. However, PC players are still waiting on the update, and DICE is pinning its arrival for "early April." "We have delayed the PC version of Naval Strike because we are concerned that the combination of the pack and planned PC updates would increase performance issues on mid-range to high-end PCs," reads an update on the Battlefield Blog. "We are working hard to resolve that issue now." When it finally docks on PC, Naval Strike will bring four new maps, ten assignments, five weapons, two gadgets, and a hovercraft vehicle to Battlefield 4. The DLC also features a new Carrier Assault mode in which opposing sides fight to sink each other's aircraft carrier while keeping their own one afloat. [Image: EA]
Project Spark Xbox One beta opens up to all
All Xbox One owners can try out the game-crafting playground of Project Spark, after Team Dakota opened up the platform's beta this week. A closed beta began earlier in the month, but now players won't need a beta key to jump into the sandbox. One of the biggest strengths of Project Spark looks to be the sheer variety of things you can create in it, and just how flexible its tools are. We've seen in the hands of the developer everything from visually authentic recreations of Limbo to fully working synthesizers, while an Xbox One beta montage trailer shows users are displaying their creative finesse too. [Image: Microsoft]
Dead Rising 3 trots out The Last Agent DLC today
Whoever said the pen is mightier than the sword was clearly not in the middle of a zombie apocalypse. The trailer for the fourth Dead Rising 3 DLC, The Last Agent, is happy to let its new thumping, splatting, burning, and exploding weaponry do all the talking. The Last Agent is out today for the Xbox One game, priced at $10, and it's the final DLC covered by the game's season pass. [Image: Capcom]
Xbox 360 draws in Max: The Curse of Brotherhood next month [Update: PC too]
Max: The Curse of Brotherhood is headed for the Xbox One's older sibling next month, with an Xbox 360 release date of April 9 announced this week. Microsoft exec Phil Spencer used his magic crayon - otherwise known as his Twitter account - to reveal the date, prompting developer Press Play to confirm it. Max: The Curse of Brotherhood follows on from Max and the Magic Marker, but swaps out that game's 2D sketchings for a detailed 2.5D look. In the platformer, Max uses his magic crayon to manipulate the environment around him, drawing vines and water streams as he navigates the perils standing between him and saving his little bro. There's no news on a price for the Xbox 360 port, but the Xbox One version was priced $15 when it launched towards the end of last year. Update: Press Play also announced a Steam release date of April 15, and confirmed prices on both PC and Xbox 360 of $15 for North America, and £12/15 euros for Europe. [Image: Press Play]
Xbox Live weekly deals include Call of Duty: Ghosts, Assassin's Creed 4
This week's deals on Xbox Live include one game on Xbox One and eight on Xbox 360 for Gold subscribers. The lone discounted game on the Xbox Games Store through March 10 is Call of Duty: Ghosts, as the standard version is 33 percent off ($39.99/£36.79/46.99 euros) and the Hardened Edition is 10 percent off ($89.99/£80.99/107.99 euros). Call of Duty: Ghosts is also 33 percent off ($40.19/£33.49/46.89 euros) for Xbox 360 owners this week, and is joined by Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag on the Games on Demand channel, one-third its usual price as well ($40.19/£36.84/46.89 euros). Three more games are 75 percent off on Xbox 360: I Am Alive ($3.74/£2.49/3.59 euros), Scott Pilgrim vs The World ($2.49/£1.68/2.37 euros) and Call of Juarez: Gunslinger ($3.74/£2.49/3.59 euros). Two more are 67 percent off this week, Galaga Legions DX and Bang Bang Racing ($3.29/£2.22/3.13 euros each). Lastly, Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate is half-off ($7.49/£4.99/7.19 euros) on XBLA. [Image: Activision]
