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KickBeat gameplay trailer is punchy
Zen Studios' upcoming rhythm fighting game KickBeat bursts with action in this new gameplay video, set to the tune of "I Can't Wait" by Cellweller. The downloadable game will launch sometime this year on Vita.
Zen Studios' first PopCap pinball table coming 'end of summer'
Zen Studios passively announced a few months back it was working on some PopCap-branded pinball tables, and now the company tells us the first one will be available by "end of summer." The company didn't reveal any branded table specifics, but looking at PopCap's highest-profile games, we'd venture to guess: Plants vs. Zombies, Peggle or Bejeweled.Despite working on new intellectual properties like CastleStorm and KickBeat, the Hungarian developer knows where its bread is buttered and plans to support Zen Pinball and Pinball FX 2 into the future.
Marvel Pinball flips to 3DS through eShop this summer
Zen Studios' Marvel Pinball will go 3D this summer on Nintendo's image-popping 3DS handheld. The game will feature four of the best tables available on consoles: Iron Man, Captain America, Blade and Fantastic Four.The game will be available as a standalone product through the Nintendo eShop for $7.99 in the lands of North America and €7.00 across the vast continent of Europe.%Gallery-157170%
Zen Studios' CastleStorm marching onto Xbox Live Arcade this year
Zen Studios is just as busy as can be, it seems. In addition to the upcoming Kickbeat, the studio is also bringing CastleStorm to Xbox Live Arcade and other unannounced platforms. Promising a mix of real-time strategy, tower defense and destruction gameplay, CastleStorm lets players take up the roles of either knights or vikings as they fight to destroy each others' castles.The game bears some resemblance to Ronimo's Swords & Soldiers, and has players sending out various troops, building their castles and using spells. Castlestorm is slated to be released this year. Check out the first trailer above and some screens in the gallery below.
Zen Studios' Kickbeat includes both kicks and beats
Zen Studios' newest game is ... not pinball. Instead, Kickbeat is a Vita music game in which you fight enemies to the beat of background music. Enemies circle you, and you kick in one of four directions to beat them, in time with the licensed music that's playing in the background.Should you happen to get tired of the included soundtrack (Rob Zombie, P.O.D., Papa Roach), you can also import your own music and generate additional levels. We're definitely interested in the included Mandarin-language rap track by Shen Yi, and we look forward to punching people to its beat sometime this year.
'Archer' may take a shot at a Pinball FX 2 table, it's all Twitter's fault
So it went down like this: Someone tweeted Archer production designer and art director Neil Holman the idea for an Archer table in Zen Studios' Pinball FX 2, Holman said he could send the idea up to FX if Zen was down, and Zen said, "Yuuuuup" (paraphrased). Holman since requested Zen's contact info and said he'll "put the wheels in motion."It looks to us like Twitter already got those gears turning, in a wonderfully public way. This is what happens when cool people work together: transparency and dead hookers. Uh, we mean, cartoon spy-drama pinball tables. Of course.
Zen Pinball 2 flies out of the chute on PS3 and PS Vita this spring
Fans of faux-bumpin' can bolster their collection of tables soon, as Zen Studios has announced Zen Pinball 2 for the PlayStation 3 and PS Vita platforms. Now, if you've purchased the previous game or Marvel Pinball, fret not -- Zen Pinball 2 will be available as a free update. You may recall Zen Studios taking a similar approach with Pinball FX 2.Zen Pinball 2 will incorporate the content from Zen Pinball and Marvel Pinball into the new platform. New users can also download Zen Pinball 2 and sample each virtual table, free of charge, via a built-in trial system. In addition to the free gameplay, Zen Studios is offering cross-play gratis. Purchasing any content in Zen Pinball 2 will grant players access on both the PS3 and PS Vita.Zen Pinball 2 will launch alongside Marvel Pinball: Avengers Chronicles this spring. And, yes, even those tables will work with Zen Pinball 2.
World War Hulk pinball trailer smashes in
The upcoming Avengers Chronicles pinball game includes four tables, each based off a story from the Marvel universe instead of a specific character. The "World War Hulk" table features the big green galumphing Dr. Banner seeking revenge against the Illuminati, X-Men, Iron Man, the Fantastic Four, Doctor Strange and anyone else in his way.%Gallery-152316%
Marvel Pinball: Avengers Chronicles coming this spring to Xbox 360, PS3 and Vita
Proficient electronic pinball developer Zen Studios announced Marvel Pinball: Avengers Chronicles this morning for the spring. The pack will be DLC for XBLA's Pinball FX2 and PS3's Marvel Pinball, and a standalone product for the PlayStation Vita.The Avenger pack will include more character interaction, dialogue and action than any of the developer's previous tables, noted Zen Studios. The four tables include: Marvel's The Avengers, World War Hulk, The Infinity Gauntlet and Fear Itself. You had us at Infinity Gauntlet. Thanos is a badass.%Gallery-150719%
Pinball FX 2 included in Windows 8 consumer preview
Windows 8 isn't even really available yet, but you can already play Pinball FX2 on it. That's what we would call being "on the ball" ... if we were interested in terrible puns, which of course we aren't.Windows 8 is available today in a consumer preview build, and Zen Studios' pinball game is included in the download, with the "Sorcerer's Lair" table. Of course, more tables will be sold as DLC. It's only fitting that this version of Windows, which touts some kind of Xbox Live functionality, will include one of Xbox Live's most popular games. To put it another way: free pinball!
Epic Quest coming to Zen Pinball, Pinball FX2 this month
Zen Studios, the developer of Pinball FX2 and Zen Pinball, did say it was going bigger this year with different ideas, which leads us to pinball-meets-RPG hybrid: Epic Quest. The new table will be available through your Zen pinball platform of choice on XBLA, PSN, Apple iOS and Android this month."It is our quest to deliver the most entertaining and original pinball tables, and Epic Quest delivers on both fronts," said Mel Kirk, Zen's VP of Marketing and Public Relations. "With a wink and a nudge towards classic RPG tropes, Epic Quest blends frantic pinball action, obsessive character building, and liberally applied tongue-in-cheek humor."What also makes this table different is experience and loot carry over from one game to the next. Players will be able to dress up the knight Max and defeat monsters to collect epic gear. It's an interesting hook to the classic fail state of any other pinball table.%Gallery-146305%
Zen Pinball 3D flips out on eShop January 12
Zen Studios is preparing the most realistic fake pinball imaginable: Zen Pinball 3D, which brings a 2D simulation of a real-world, 3D game back into 3D. The developer officially announced details of the 3DS eShop release today, revealing a January 12 date and a $6.99 price. Not quite the "fall" date we originally heard, but it's very close to now. For those tokens, you'll get four tables, including Earth Defense, Shaman, Excalibur, and Eldorado. Zen Studios plans to follow those with DLC tables, which have yet to be announced. We're guessing they'll come from the lineup of tables made for other versions.%Gallery-134378%
Hulk smash new Marvel pinball table next year
The Pinball games from Zen Studios -- Pinball FX 2 on XBLA and Marvel Pinball on PSN -- will receive a Hulk table sometime next year. XBLAfans took note of the forum post where Mel Kirk, VP of PR and Marketing for Zen Studios, explicitly announced the angry green goon's forthcoming appearance. "Everything that comes from Marvel next year will be bigger, not necessarily character specific," Kirk told us when we asked about the table. "Hulk will be the main character, but it will be based on something in the Marvel storyline." It would appear Zen Studios' relationship with Marvel is going well. The company launched the original Marvel tables last year, followed by DLC featuring Fantastic Four and Captain America (one of the best tables available), and the "Vengeance and Virtue" tables which came out last week. From what Zen Studios is saying, there's plenty more to come in 2012.
Name Zen Studios' next game, get a credit and a cameo
Zen Studios, creator of Zen Pinball and the Pinball FX series, needs your help. Your mission: come up with a name for the developer's next project, currently codenamed "Zen Fu" and described as "an experimental rhythm game featuring fully 3D characters and combat, aggressive music, and an East Asian theme." Damn, and we thought we had "Pinball FX 3" on lockdown. Should a lucky boy or girl choose the perfect name (presumably not related to pinball), he or she will be featured as a character in the game and will receive a proper credit for their contribution. You can submit your title to zen-fu@zenstudios.com, and be sure to check the Zen Studios forums to see what other people are coming up with. The developer will accept entries until January 4. Oh, and if you need some inspiration, check out the concept art above.
Marvel 'Vengeance and Virtue' tables out now
The flippin' Marvel Universe-based "Vengeance and Virtue" DLC is available now on PSN for Marvel Pinball and XBLA via Pinball FX 2. The four tables feature Thor, Ghost Rider, Moon Knight and the X-Men for $10 (800 MSP).
PSA: Pinball FX2 'Paranormal' table available now, free for a week
The brand new "Paranormal" table for Pinball FX2 is available now for free until November 2. Just download the table off the marketplace and you'll be all set for a flippering Kolchak: The Night Stalker-inspired pinball table. As always, the Pinball FX2 platform is also free, so this is a win/win proposition. After next Wednesday, the table will likely be 240 MSP ($3), but why pay tomorrow for what you can get for free today? Download link to Marketplace %Gallery-137598%
Pinball FX2 offers free 'Paranormal' table starting next Wednesday
XBLA's Pinball FX2 will offer its new table, "Paranormal," for free between October 26 and November 2. The catch? You have to download Pinball FX2, which is also free... wait, that's not a "catch." "Yes, you get to keep it FOREVER. Just download it between October 26 and November 2," Zen Studios' PR guru Mel Kirk told us. "In celebration of one year of Pinball FX2, and as a big thank you to all of our supporters, we are happy to offer the new Paranormal table free for one week!" After the gratis period, the table will likely be 240 MSP ($3), just like the others. The developer has been on a roll lately with some pretty fun tables, so if you've never tried Pinball FX2, free is a pretty good price point to find out if you're a flipper phenom.
Zen Studios bringing Pinball FX to 3DS, Vita, mobile; shows off X-Men table
As if Zen Studio's Pinball FX series wasn't already enormously popular, studio reps told an audience of New York Comic Con attendees that the pinball franchise would be heading to Nintendo 3DS, PlayStation Vita, and iOS/Android "phones and tablets" at some point in 2012. Get your flippin' fingers at the ready! He also revealed a brand new table coming this winter as part of the upcoming "Vengeance and Virtue" Marvel DLC pack, themed around the X-Men. Which apparently means it's of the "Virtue" category, though we don't think Wolverine would appreciate being called "virtuous" very much.
'Sorcerer's Lair' casting a spell on Pinball FX2 October 12
The ever-growing stable of tables in Pinball FX2 will see a magical new addition come October 12, when Zen Studios will release "Sorcerer's Lair." The table gives off a bit of a Harry Potter vibe, with two lovable scamps seemingly exploring a spooky castle. Specifically, players will "avoid pesky traps, defeat an army of undead skeletons, explore six cellar missions and restore peace to those who reside within the walls of the ancient Citadel as you fight to escape the grasps of the evil Sorcerer." Presumably, most of these tasks will be accomplished by ramming things with a metal ball, and there's nothing wrong with that.
Zen Pinball 3D flippers onto 3DS this fall
Zen Pinball 3D will have balls of steel flying at your face this autumn on Nintendo's 3DS. Developed by Zen Studios, the team behind the excellent Pinball FX 2 and Marvel Pinball, the title will launch with four tables on Nintendo's eShop. The game will feature local hot seat multiplayer, online leaderboards and in-game achievements for accomplishing table-specific missions. The game does not come with a Nerf shell for the 3DS, however, so extra diligence is required when frustration at constant loss overrides sensibility. Ball out? How about WINDOW OUT?%Gallery-134378%
