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PSN leaderboards point to top game downloads for January
Gamasutra wasn't able to get its hands on year-to-date PSN sales data directly from Sony, but it has come up with some interesting conclusions based on an unscientific look at ... leaderboard stats. The site broke down January's new releases, as well as a few other games that sold well last month, and the big debut of the month appears to be Hustle Kings, which added over 39,000 players to its ranks. Assault Heroes only picked up 754 new players, but given that it's a game that actually came out in 2006 on the Xbox, that's not a big surprise. PSN also offered up its "10 for '10" sale in January, and Uno came away from that event with a whopping 87,000 new players on its leaderboards. Braid and Critter Crunch also did well, adding 20,000 and 17,000 new players to their leaderboards, respectively. Keep in mind that these numbers are far from official, and not complete anyway -- Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment, Thexder Neo and Matt Hazard were released on PSN last month, and none of those games are included in this analysis, due to unreliable or nonexistent leaderboards. But it is probably fair to say that PSN had a pretty good month in January, especially with the games featured in its "10 for '10" sale. More of that, please.
PSN Thursday: Were you waiting for the Uncharted 2 demo?
Folks who couldn't bring themselves to buy Uncharted 2 until they played the demo, well, now's their chance. This week's PSN update adds a single-player demo for Joystiq's Game of the Year for 2009. For those who already have Nathan Drake's latest adventure, the update also includes the $5 "PlayStation Heroes" pack, which allows you to reskin the Uncharted 2 crew with Resistance, inFamous and Killzone bodies. Check out the full PSN update after the break, along with the PSP comics update. Choose your platform to view the corresponding release list: (Note: Continue past the break to view both release lists.)
Assault Heroes is really late to PSN
So here's a mixed blessing for PS3-playing twin-stick shooter fans: Assault Heroes is coming to PSN, as announced by Konami today. It's exciting, because Assault Heroes is pretty darn good, but it's also weird, as the direct port of the XBLA game is practically a retro release at this point. Heck, the sequel was on XBLA a year and a half ago! We're not sure why Konami didn't decide to release a bundle of both titles or something, but at least you've got until 2010 to decide if you're going to meet them halfway on this.
Free XBLA game ... if you follow the rules
Itching for a gratis Xbox Live Arcade game? Microsoft is offering one of five titles for free, but you have to follow these four steps: Live in the UK. Sign up for 12 months of Xbox Live Gold between now and January 5. It must be done directly through Xbox Live, meaning you can't use that prepaid card your mom or significant other bought you as a gift. Decide what game you want free: Zuma, Marble Blast, Sonic the Hedgehog, Assault Heroes or 3D Ultra Minigolf. Do this step in your head. Download a gamer pic or theme related to the game. Only the first one counts, so make sure you didn't skip Step 3 before downloading a picture of a putter when you're hoping to nab Sonic. See, folks? Even with digital distribution, TINSTAAFL applies: There is no such thing as a free lunch. Of course, if you were needing to upgrade or renew your subscription anyways, you might as well get something extra out of it.Update: Sorry, one more caveat folks -- it's UK only.[Thanks, Richard]
Fanswag: Win 1600 MS point codes and Assault Heroes 2
And so we roll on to day two of our ginormous Microsoft Point giveaway. For today's giveaway, we have five (count 'em five) 1600 Microsoft Point codes to giveaway. Not only that, but our first prize winner will also receive a download code for Assault Heroes 2 and an Assault Heroes 2 hat. In addition to that, our second and third place winners will also receive Assault Heroes 2 hats along with their MS Points. How do you win? Simple: Leave a comment on this post telling us what you would buy with 1600 Microsoft Points. We don't care if it's actually on the Marketplace or not. Only one comment per person will be accepted. Posters of multiple comments will be disqualified. We'll accept entries until 6:00PM Eastern time today, June 19, 2008. You must be at least 18 years old to enter. This giveaway is open only to residents of the U.S. and Canada (excluding Quebec). Later today, we'll pick 5 winners via a random drawing One grand prize winner will receive a redemption code for 1600 Microsoft Points and a redemption code for Assault Heroes 2 and an Assault Heroes 2 hat, worth a total of $40; two second prize winners will each receive a redemption code for 1600 Microsoft Points and an Assault Heroes 2 hat, worth a total of $30 each; and two third prize winners will each receive a redemption code for 1600 Microsoft Points, worth $20 each. Complete giveaway rules can be found here Be sure to come back tomorrow, as our next giveaway will have an even better grand prize (hint: it's not an XBLA game).
XBLA in Brief: Assault Heroes 2
In the latest XBLA in Brief, we check out Assault Heroes 2, the sequel to one of Xbox Live Arcade's best action titles. The sequel takes the foundations of the first game and adds new weapons and vehicles into the mix. The on-foot gameplay has been dramatically improved as well. Check out the video and find out whether or not Assault Heroes 2 belongs in your XBLA library. [iTunes] Subscribe to X3F TV directly in iTunes. [Zune] Subscribe to the X3F TV directly (Zune Marketplace link coming soon). [RSS] Add the X3F TV feed to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically. [M4V] Download the M4V directly.
Assault Heroes 2 assaults XBLA
click to enlarge After all the Spring Showcase excitement yesterday, it's hard to come to terms with the fact that it's just another plain ol' Wednesday now. How could you possibly stifle the Wednesday doldrums? Oh that's right, it's Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday! That means there's a brand new Xbox Live Arcade game available. To top it all off, it's actually a sequel to one of XBLA's best shooters. Yup, it's Assault Heroes 2. It's like Assault Heroes, except with more weapons, new vehicles, and, of course, more massive destruction. Go grab the trial version and see whether or not massive destruction is your thing (we're betting it is). Let's just hope they fixed the faulty co-op this time around. %Gallery-22641%
This Wednesday: Assault Heroes 2 shoots everything on XBLA
We're afraid the sequel to Assault Heroes is still not an open-ended, city-dwelling game where you're tasked with punching firemen and war veterans. Sierra Online's Assault Heroes 2, which is scheduled to demolish the Xbox Live Arcade lineup this Wednesday, is very much in line with 2006's omni-directional shooter, though we suspect we won't be able to make jokes about a broken multiplayer mode this time. Instead, we'll have to deliver punchlines that involve the sequel's more destructive weaponry, ability to hi-jack enemy vehicles and high volume of "relentless enemies and outrageous bosses." And sometimes, it has all of that, with two-player co-op ... in space! It's yours for 800 MS Points ($10). %Gallery-18238%
Assault Heroes 2 assaults the XBLA this week
Is should come as no surprise that this Wednesday, May 14th, Sierra's Assault Heroes 2 will make its release to the Xbox Live Arcade to the joy of arcade gamers worldwide. This 800 Microsoft point sequel builds upon the original Assault Heroes formula by making battles more intense, adding new weaponry, making vehicles hijackable and, of course, co-op gaming. Get excited, because lots of "boom!", "kablaam!" and "sizzle!" is headed to the XBLA this week. %Gallery-22641%
Video: meet the bosses of Assault Heroes 2
With less than a week to go before Assault Heroes 2 arrives on Xbox Live Arcade (it's scheduled to drop on May 14), Sierra is ramping up the publicity, releasing a new two part trailer featuring some of the game's massive bosses. There seems to be an obsession with throwing mechanized versions of various fauna at players this time around, as the bosses featured in the video are the Mecha Gorilla, Mech Scorpion, Mecha Killer Orca (really?), Mecha Snake, Mecha Quadruped, and Mecha Demolition (guess they ran out of animals with that last one). Suffice it to say that the bosses are appropriately huge and they seem to be capable of dealing death quite adequately. We approve. Find the second trailer after the break.
Assault Heroes 2 video extravaganza
Look! It's an Assault Heroes 2 video extravaganza complete with seconds upon seconds of explosive in-game Assault Heroes 2 action! Watch as destruction is dealt out in two player cooperation. Watch as tanks fall apart, choppers drop from the sky and points get accrued. And all that's just in the one video above! There are two more Assault Heroes 2 gameplay videos embedded after the break that promise twice as much video goodness. That's why we're calling it a video extravaganza!
Joystiq impressions: Assorted Sierra XBLA games
Sierra recently showed off its upcoming crop of XBLA games at a media event. While a couple have promise, most could be buried by the quantity or quality of competitors. All are confirmed only for XBLA, but Sierra is considering PSN versions of most. All will be out this Summer.
Assault Heroes 2 assaults the XBLA May 14th
Wanako Studios' Assault Heroes has garnered a pretty solid following since its December 2006 release to the Xbox Live Arcade, so one could only expect the Assault Heroes 2 sequel to be just as successful. Especially since Wanako improved upon the explosive formula by adding the ability to hijack vehicles, encounter new enemies and experience new co-op gameplay. So, those fanboys who just can't wait to blow things up will be excited to hear that the 800 Microsoft point Assault Heroes 2 has just been confirmed for a May 14th release to the XBLA. Get ready and get explosive!
Assault Heroes 2 blows up XBLA on May 14
Wanako's Assault Heroes would have been one of our most cherished bits of Xbox Live Arcade entertainment had one key element -- online gameplay -- not been so broken so as to only be recognizable by its dental records. Even so, we are forgiving sorts, and when news came down that the developer planned to try its hands at the game once more with a sequel this spring, we figured why not. If He-Man and ABC After School Specials taught us one thing, it's that everyone deserves a second chance.Carrying a promise to "expand its horizons into outer space," publisher Sierra Online has confirmed that Assault Heroes 2 will roll onto XBLA on May 14. The sequel will include a number of additions to the series' freshman outing, including the ability to hijack vehicles -- including spacecraft -- as well as more levels. There will also be a number of new co-op modes included, though honestly we're less concerned with what's been added than we are with Wanako simply making them work.[Via press release]
Assault Heroes 2 achievements (hint: shoot things)
MyGamercard.net has revealed the achievements for Sierra Online and Wanako's upcoming XBLA shooter Assault Heroes 2. The secret to most of the achievements lies right there in the genre: shooting stuff. The trick is just how you shoot them and who you do it with. The achievements offer a nice mix of single and multiplayer achievements, and it doesn't sound like any of them are too difficult, but it's hard to say before we know how difficult the game is in general. Our favorite achievement is definitely Smoothie Heroes. Not only does the name reference a delicious frozen treat, but the description for obtaining the achievement earns points for creativity: "Co-op Campaign: Kill 100 infantry, one player freezes & the other shatters, on Hard in one session." Hit the "read" link for the complete listing..
Doom and Assault Heroes now only 400 MS Points
If you're looking for this week's new Xbox Live Arcade games, don't bother. There aren't any you see, because this week all we're getting is the newly discounted versions of Doom and Assault Heroes. Yes, they are now both considered Xbox Live Arcade Hits, and are now both available for only 400 MS Points each, half their original price. Seeing as these aren't new titles, we won't be putting together a new XBLA in Brief video this week. Suffice it to say that both are very good XBLA games and easily worth 400 points each.
Doom, Assault Heroes become $5 XBLA Hits
Perhaps, like us, you occasionally feel the urge to parade through the neighborhood, toting nothing but an impossibly huge rocket launcher and a desire to vaporize anything that, well, isn't you. And perhaps, like us, you realize (before it's too late) that these impractical desires are best expressed in video games such as Sierra Online's Assault Heroes or id Software's iconic Doom. It's certainly a lot cheaper. In fact, the two aforementioned games will be added to Xbox Live's Arcade Hits program this Wednesday, March 19th, resulting in a 50% discount to 400 MS Points ($5) each. As Microsoft is keen to point out in the same press release, your determined point pinching may just come in handy for a lineup of new titles due to arrive on Xbox Live Arcade "in the near future:"
Assault Heroes and Doom go half price this Wed
This Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday, we will sadly not be treated to any new Arcade releases. And we agree, that's a stinker. But there is a bright spot this week when, this Wednesday, March 19th, both the previously released XBLA games Assault Heroes and Doom will graduate to Xbox Live Arcade Hits status. And, as everyone knows, when an XBLA game becomes an Arcade Hit it means that its price gets slashed and in this case, in half to 400 Microsoft points each. No new releases is a bummer, but we haven't seen any new Arcade Hits since the program's launch in December so how could we not be thrilled for discounted XBLA fun? Remember, there's always next week.
Assault Heroes 2 blows up XBLA this Spring
Confirming an earlier ESRB listing, Sierra Online has announced a sequel to its popular top-down arcade shooter, Assault Heroes. Promising to "expand its horizons into outer space," Assault Heroes 2 will feature cooperative gameplay, hi-jackable enemy vehicles and, by the looks of things, at least one robot mammoth. We rather like those. Developed by Wanako Studios, Assault Heroes 2 is scheduled to arrive on Xbox Live Arcade this Spring. Be sure to check out IGN's preview for further details. %Gallery-18238%
Assault Heroes 2 coming to XBLA
Though it's been on the radar before thanks to an early ERSB review, Assault Heroes 2 had never been an official XBLA title; until now. IGN posted a preview and video of the game and it already looks to be improving greatly on the original in a whole host of ways. Wanako Games is bringing us the sequel to the original hit with the community and feedback in mind, implementing changes such as putting more emphasis on co-op and creating more varied three-dimensional levels. The on-foot sections of the game have also been fleshed out, to raise them to the same level of quality as the rest of the game. Though the core gameplay and visual appearance are almost identical, those things weren't exactly broken to begin with, and should remain as engaging as ever when Assault Heroes 2 hits later on this spring.
