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The Behemoth gives Major Trophy
Showing what an awesome development team they are, The Behemoth gave Major Nelson a custom, hand made FBI Agent trophy. This was in thanks for his support of their first title for Xbox Live Arcade, Alien Hominid HD, back in late February. Now, some of you may remember that The Behemoth was going to give away trophies for those at the top of the leaderboards of the game. Major, being an MS employee was not eligible to win, no matter how mad his skillz, so they hooked him up with this absolutely badass trophy, and he's posted pics on his flickr page of the gift and the thank you letter included in the package. Hopefully, The Behemoth will remember X3F and our GDC interview when Castle Crashers lands on Arcade, right guys?
Indies and consoles: an imperfect system
According to Gamasutra's Simon Carless, the independent scene is facing an uphill battle when developing for consoles, specifically in the realm of digital distribution. Carless argues that the difficulty in bringing a title across all platforms, both for technological and business reasons.Other than some retro titles (e.g. Joust), a very small number of downloadable title are appearing on both Xbox Live and PlayStation Network. Capcom's Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo HD Remix is one of the few exceptions, and Capcom's Christian Svensson said it required "considerable coordination" to get the titles on both consoles, which indicates to us that less established independent houses would have insurmountable difficulty.Carless notes that Sony's collection, retro games aside, are predominantly first party (though we should note that flOw went to Sony because they actively sought out the independent title). Nintendo has always talked about bringing original games to the Wii, and there have been murmurings of a Game Channel, but so far all the only tangible indication of a non-Virtual Console title is Impossible Mission.Carless' analogy to the film industry (three separate formats for theatre chains), though admittedly ham-fisted, does not account for industry history. It may be unfair to the independent developer, but there hasn't been a time when gaming was controlled by a single format. Sure, development teams are now much larger and require a bigger budget, but that hasn't stopped smaller teams from succeeding with Geometry Wars, Ragdoll Kung-Fu, and Alien Hominid (pictured). The state of indie games isn't ideal, but it seems to be getting better. We say keep on fighting, Simon.
Alien Hominid HD trophies awarded
A while back, The Behemoth offered the best Alien Hominid HD players a chance to win custom trophies for staying on top of the leaderboards. And today, they announced the winners and sent out the shiny hardware. Each winner will receive a trophy that was created in-house, customized with the winner's gamertag, and dated. There are also a few gamers who went above and beyond the call of duty and will be eternally immortalized in The Behemoth's hall of fame.And if you're a tad jealous that you didn't win a trophy, don't worry. The Behemoth manufactured over 150 extra trophy bases for future giveaways. Loving fellas aren't they?Read - Trophy making process.Read - Leaderboard winners.
More Alien Hominid HD levels available
Yeah, yeah, we know we're late on this, but die-hard Alien Hominid fans should know that there are now even more PDA levels available for download in Alien Hominid HD. The content is called the "PDA Euro pack" and contains 100 new PDA levels that have never been seen inside the US. So, if you live in Europe then there really isn't all that much to get excited about. Of course, there is a brand new episode of the Xbox 360 Fancast available. That's sort of exciting, right? No? Oh, alright then.
Alien Hominid content invades XBLA
Those of us lost in the Egyptian ball busting action found in Luxor 2 may have missed the new content available for Alien Hominid HD. The new content adds 100 new levels to the PDA mini-game found in Alien Hominid HD. The new levels can be had for the pittance of 150 Microsoft Points. In addition to the new levels, 2 new Alien Hominid picture packs are available for 100 points each. Sure, it's not as exciting as, say, Castle Crashers, but it might be a worthy purchase if you've got some spare points in your account, which you probably do if you bought Luxor 2. Funny how that works out, isn't it?
Fanswag: Alien Hominid HD Giveaway the end
Our Alien Hominid HD Giveaway has come to an end and it is okay to shed a tear or two. But let's divulge who the winner of yesterday's day 3 giveaway was. The winner of an autographed Alien Hominid figurine set is ... drumroll ... Cam! Congratulations Cam, we know those figurines will be proudly displayed in your cubicle. Again, we must thank The Behemoth for their generosity in donating these prizes during their leaderboards giveaway. Those guys are definitely cool dudes. And a big thanks goes out to you, all the fanboy readers, for participating as we hope to have more giveaways in the near future. You guys are cool dudes too.
Fanswag: Alien Hominid HD Giveaway day 3 [update 1]
Update 1: This contest is now closed. For the winner click here.It's the third day of our Alien Hominid HD Giveaway and we're pleased to announced day 2's winners. Both taking home an Alien Hominid tshirt is ... drumroll ... Chris and MuffNman! Congrats guys, you both have equally interesting reasons why aliens are much cooler than pirates. But onward to today's prize. Today we're going out with a bang by giving away one autographed Alien Hominid figurine set (pictured above). This set is numbered and autographed by both Dan Paladin and Tom Fulp, more pictures after the break. To win, simply comment on this post stating where you'll showcase these Alien Hominid figurines if you won this giveaway. It's really that easy. One winner will be randomly chosen today at 11:59 PM EST and will be announced tomorrow. Again, to enter, simply write a comment stating where you'll showcase these figurines if you won. A big thanks goes out to The Behemoth for donating the Alien Hominid swag for the giveaway. Also, be sure to check out their leaderboards giveaway going on now!Rules: Please read the complete official rules for this giveaway. Remember, this giveaway is only open to US residents who are 13 years of age or older. Day three contest ends on 3/23/07 at 11:59 PM EST, when one winner will be randomly selected.
Fanswag: Alien Hominid HD Giveaway day 2 [update 1]
Update 1: This contest is now closed. For the winner click here.It's the second day of our Alien Hominid HD Giveaway and we're pleased to announced day 1's winner. Taking home an XL Alien Hominid tshirt is ... drumroll ... Erik Novak! Congrats Erik Novak, who thinks The Behemoth's chicken got so obese by eating too many Soylent McNuggets. But onward to today's prize. Today we're giving away two Alien Hominid tshirts (pictured above) in both L and XL sizes. To win one of these tshirts, simply comment on this post stating why you think aliens are cooler than pirates. It's really that easy. Two winners will be randomly chosen today at 11:59 PM EST and will be announced tomorrow. Again, to enter, simply write a comment stating why you think aliens are cooler than pirates. A big thanks goes out to The Behemoth for donating the Alien Hominid swag for the giveaway. Also, be sure to check out their leaderboards giveaway going on now!Rules: Please read the complete official rules for this giveaway. Remember, this giveaway is only open to US residents who are 13 years of age or older. Day two contest ends on 3/22/07 at 11:59 PM EST, when two winners will be randomly selected.
Fanswag: Alien Hominid HD Giveaway day 1 [update 1]
Update 1: This contest is now closed. For the winner click here.Today we're kicking off our three day Alien Hominid HD Giveaway! Today's prize is one Alien Hominid XL tshirt (pictured above) to prevent you from having to walk around naked. So, how do you win this lovely tshirt? Simply comment on this post stating how you think The Behemoth's chicken (as seen in their logo) got so obese. It's really that simple. One winner will be randomly chosen today at 11:59 PM EST and will be announced tomorrow. Again, to enter, simply write a comment stating how you think The Behemoth's chicken got so obese. A big thanks goes out to The Behemoth for donating the Alien Hominid swag for the giveaway. Also, be sure to check out their leaderboards giveaway going on now!Rules: Please read the complete official rules for this giveaway. Remember, this giveaway is only open to US residents who are 13 years of age or older. Day one contest ends on 3/21/07 at 11:59 PM EST, when one winner will be randomly selected.
Fanswag: Alien Hominid HD Giveaway
Alien Hominid HD graced our Xbox 360s a few weeks ago creating a man-crush between us and that little yellow alien. But what are fanboys to do to live out our daily Alien Hominid fantasies? Maybe a nifty tshirt or a limited edition figurine set would help, but how does one get such exciting items?Well, our good friends over at The Behemoth (Alien Hominid's daddy) were kind enough to send us some goodies. Why? Because they like you and because yesterday they launched their leaderboard trophy giveaway and want to spread the alien love. We'll be giving out a total of four prizes this week running from Wednesday through Friday. Wondering how you're supposed to win? Every day the contest will be different, so be prepared for pretty much anything. The giveaways start tomorrow, so prepare yourself by analyzing the prize breakdown below. Wednesday's Prize: Alien Hominid tshirt XL Thursday's Prize: Alien Hominid tshirts XL and L Friday's Prize: Autographed Alien Hominid figurine set Click here for Official Contest Rules Thanks again to The Behemoth for donating the sweet prizes. And be sure to check out their Alien Hominid HD leaderboard giveaway to try and win one of their shiny trophies.
Castle Crashers GDC '07 impressions
Castle Crashers is a chaotic storm of spinning swords, overly aggressive primary colors and the occasional (but never displeasing) decapitation -- which is why we like it. Though the GDC demo boasts only a few notable changes from previous iterations, it still warrants a look. A long and loving look accompanied by a forlorn sigh and the formation of a gently sparkling tear. One of the most interesting things about the game is the manner in which it draws your attention. It's even a little conflicting, as if two sets of fingers are snapping in your face in an alternating pattern. When you're not trying to spot your character deep within the colorful anarchy of battle, you're adopting a wider view of all the over-the-top action. It's like a tug of war, and one not too dissimilar from the battle between order and chaos that's at the core of the game.
GTR giving away Alien Hominid HD
Those slick fellas over at Gamertag Radio are giving away a free copy of newly released XBLA game Alien Hominid HD. They received a code to download the game from the XBLA team and want to give it away to their loyal listeners ... how nice of them. All you have to do to enter their giveaway is reply to the post before this Sunday and you too can be partake in 2D side-scrolling fun. Alien Hominid HD FTW and good luck to you![Thanks, DjDATZ]
The Behemoth's Dan Paladin interviewed
Game Almighty posted an interview with Dan Paladin, The Behemoth's artist extraordinaire for Alien Hominid HD and upcoming XBLA title Castle Crashers. In the interview, Dan talks about the differences in the art style between the games, where he gets his inspiration, and why he is so cool. He also talks about the challenges and changes they've encountered while developing Castle Crashers, including reducing the size of the knights on screen and dealing with the complex code. One of the most interesting tidbits from the interview is when Mr. Paladin talks about a few of Castle Crashers' game features stating:"In Castle Crashers, when holding down the right trigger all 4 of the buttons on top become spells that are intuitive to the player. For instance, press jump without right trigger and you jump normally. Press jump with the right trigger held down and you do a magic boosted jump. You can unlock a lot of characters to play as - as well as weapons, pets, and items! Every character has their own magic abilities which affect the enemies in different ways."We must admit, we are uber excited for some four player co-op over Xbox Live and beating on those bad dudes. Anyone satisfied with XBLA title Alien Hominid HD and overly pumped for some Castle Crashers later this year?[Thanks, Chris]
Alien Hominid details and shiny trophies
We've officially forgotten about last week's lackluster XBLA release and are looking towards this weeks confirmed XBLA title Alien Hominid. The game will be releasing this Wednesday, February 28th and will set you back only 800 Microsoft points. And if that doesn't get you salivating, then you'll be pleased to know that developer The Behemoth will be giving away trophies to the best players. Yes, real physical metal trophies to the week's best players who climb the Xbox Live leaderboards. Don't believe us? Check out the picture above and note that they are really real and would look nice sitting on top of your television. Prepare for an alien invasion this Wednesday, climb those leaderboards, win a trophy, and hope Microsoft releases a few more great XBLA titles in the coming weeks.[Via Joystiq]
Alien Hominid HD costs 800 points, prizes for leaderboard champs
Microsoft has sent word along that yes, Alien Hominid HD will in fact be on Xbox Live Arcade this Wednesday and that it can be yours for the low, low price of 800 Microsoft Points. This is actually a pleasant surprise as Alien Hominid is seen as one of the more full-bodied titles on the XBLA block and one that could have fetched a heftier price. Suddenly, 1200 MS Points for Lumines Live feels even more ridiculous.The developers over at The Behemoth also have some treats in store for those awesome enough to scale their leader boards. Should you be a bad enough dude to land at the top of any of the charts, The Behemoth will send you a trophy. No fooling! A physical manifestation of your skills in which to utilize while gloating! The contest is set to last "until we get tired of sending you guys stuff."In other news, serious cat? It looks like you've got this Wednesday off, buddy.
Confirmed: Alien Hominid coming next week
In an interview with 1UP, Aaron Greenberg had to defend the XBLA and its somewhat inconsistant release schedule. While talking about the future of the XBLA Greenberg confirmed the release of Alien Hominid stating "we are excited to bring Alien Hominid out next week; we are excited to make up for lost time". Now, if that's not a release date confirmation we don't know what is. Greenberg also went on to say that at this year's Game Developer's Conference we'll be seeing a bunch of playable arcade games, announcements, and never before seen titles. But that's a little too far into the future, the real news is that Alien Hominid is releasing next week!.[Thanks, Brian]
Rumor: Alien Hominid HD on XBLA next week
Earlier this week somebody over at Xbox.com flipped the wrong switch and activated what looked to be the next set of games for Xbox Live Arcade. Although they quickly course corrected and pulled the page, the URL for Alien Hominid HD is still active. They've also updated a few bits of information to the page since accidentally posting and used a spell -check. The earlier new and "imprived" graphics are a sure sign the page was activated too early. The only thing that's a little sad is Alien Hominid looks to be only two player co-op locally, which means no blasting away with your buddy on the other side of our third rock from the sun. So, we don't know if Alien Hominid HD is ready to roll, but it sure looks like Xbox.com is locked, loaded, spell-checked and ready to go.
Alien Hominid HD reviewed
Our buddies at XBLArcade report that the latest issue of the Official Xbox Magazine contains a review for Alien Hominid HD for Xbox Live Arcade. The review cites the games unique visuals, excellent co-op, and nonstop action as the game's good points. The review also notes that the game is finished too quickly and that the minigames aren't really worth much playtime. Overall, the game receives a 7.5 out of 10. Not too shabby. Unfortunately, the review doesn't state how much the game will cost with it hits the Arcade. We're hoping the game will debut for 800 points or less.So there you go, Alien Hominid HD is pretty good. Now all we need is a release date.
The Political Game: Can you create a gaming city?
Each week Dennis McCauley contributes The Political Game, a column on the collision of politics and video games:At the vgXpo in Philly last weekend I was asked to serve on a panel discussing how to make Philadelphia into a video game Mecca. Tough question. Among life's imponderables, that's right up there.At first blush it seems like a mega-long shot. Sandwiched between New York and Washington, Philly has a long-standing municipal inferiority complex. And even though it's the nation's fourth largest metropolitan area (behind NYC, Los Angeles and Chicago), this Rodney Dangerfield of a town seemingly gets no respect.Although Philly area people are avid gamers, from a game development standpoint, there isn't a whole lot happening in or around the City of Brotherly Love. A suburban company, eGames, cranks out some nice casual fare for the PC crowd. Majesco, more familiar to console and handheld fans, is headquartered in New Jersey, closer to New York than Philly, truth be told. Maybe the most happening thing in town right now is Newgrounds.com, the Flash portal operated by Tom Fulp, who also designed the indie hit Alien Hominid.
Crashing castles on Xbox Live Arcade
Behemoth has announced that they are bringing Alien Hominid and a new original title to Xbox Live Arcade. The new title, Castle Crashers, is sure to remind many of old school beat 'em ups like Golden Axe and Guardian Heroes. The game features lots of enemies, 4 player co-op, and some serious action. Bonus points to Behemoth for making the characters look like the Black Knight (who, as you know, always triumphs). After you watch the gameplay video above, be sure and check out the official trailer on Xboxyde.I'm just going to abandon all journalistic objectivity here and say Castle Crashers looks like it's going to kick ass.[Via Joystiq]
