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Hear the remastered Bejeweled soundtracks for the first time
You know, we didn't even realize Bejeweled games had music. Every time we play one of those joints it's when we're supposed to be doing something else -- so it's always muted, if not half-tucked under our desk on an iPhone, all cocked sideways. Listening to the remastered Bejeweled 2 and 3 soundtracks, now available to stream (or purchase) from the composers' page on online music store Bandcamp, it's clear that we've been missing out. These lively electronic ditties have a lot of spirit -- so why waste them on gem-matching? This could be the mix that finally transforms your mundane ride to work into a "journey," or your half-assed workout into a "quest." Bonus: The Plants vs. Zombies soundtrack is also available on Bandcamp.
Xbox Live Deal of the Week: 50% off Bejeweled 2, Uno Rush, Tetris Splash
Casual cost-cutting news now as this week's Xbox Live deals are now live. Through Sunday, Gold members can grab Bejeweled 2, Uno Rush, Zuma, Tetris Splash and Feeding Frenzy 2 for half-off their usual prices.
PopCap offering free Bejeweled 2 today for birthday celebration
If it wasn't fairly evident before than PopCap has a very personal vendetta against your work ethic, it should be now -- in celebration of the 10th birthday of the developer's flagship, gem-swapping casual series, its offering a free download of Bejeweled 2 for PC and Mac.
NintendoWare Weekly: Bejeweled 2, Telegraph Crosswords
This is the final NintendoWare Weekly update before Nintendo's E3 conference tomorrow. What kind of exciting changes will tomorrow bring? Does it even matter, now that Bejeweled 2 is on the Wii? WiiWare Bejeweled 2 (PopCap, 1 Player, 1000 Wii Points) If you ever want to see your Wii console again, you'll make sure that your casual-gaming family do not ever, ever find out about the launch of Bejeweled 2 on WiiWare. They haven't seen this news post, have they? Arcade Sports (Icon, 2 Players, 800 Wii Points) Just in case your system didn't come with a multiplayer bowling game, this new WiiWare offering provides four sports to play: air hockey, bowling, pool and snooker. Yard Sale Hidden Treasures: Sunnyville (Konami, 1 Player, 500 Wii Points) As the last vampire slayer of Sunnyville (probably), you must search local yard sales on a mission to find hidden treasures and save the world.
Google to digitally distribute games through web-based app store
[Engadget] Former Joystiqer Ross Miller is currently on the ground for Engadget at Google's annual dev conference "I/O" in San Francisco, where the company just revealed its web-based app store for Chrome and Chrome OS. Aside from a handful of regular ol' apps and an interactive version of Sports Illustrated (paper? what's that?), Google debuted games for purchase, playable in-browser. Plants vs. Zombies and Lego Star Wars are explicitly mentioned in the piece, but we can also spot Bejeweled 2 (also by PopCap), as well as Poker Rivals, Scrabble, FIFA World Cup 2010, and Who Has the Biggest Brain? (all by EA) -- a LucasArts rep clarified for us that the version of Lego Star Wars seen is actually this already available online game. We're not sure how much the games will be going for or even exactly how it'll work just yet, but we'll let you know just as soon as we do (there's a bit more info on the FAQ page). The web store is set to go live for developers "soon," but hasn't been dated for the general public just yet.
PopCap looses 13-game Mac pack for $50, free time mysteriously disappears
In a thinly veiled attempt at free time domination the world over (at least with regards to Mac users), PopCap is currently offering its "Complete Pack" for the significantly lowered price of $50. All of our favorite time-thieving addictions are present -- from Plants vs. Zombies to Bookworm to Bejeweled 2 -- as well as a handful of other games totaling 13 in all. There's no cutoff date given for the bundle's sale, but we'd suggest snapping it up sooner than later. That is, if you're looking to say goodbye to everything for a little while.
Bejeweled 2 rated for Wii
PopCap's remarkably popular casual games have been released on just about every gaming platform on the current market, save for one notable exception: Wii. That could soon change, however, according to the USK. Germany's ratings board has listed the match-three puzzle game Bejeweled 2 for release on Wii. Now Mike Leyde can start all over again -- with a new control scheme! If you haven't played Bejeweled 2, you can download it here or play a web version here. Oh, but first, clear your day. [Via Gamerbytes]
Man 'beats' Bejeweled 2 after playing for 3 years
digg_url = 'http://www.joystiq.com/2010/04/30/man-beats-bejeweled-2-after-playing-for-3-years/'; We admire all forms of dedication -- even the absolutely insane forms. A California steel contractor named Mike Leyde recently displayed one such type of persistence by playing a single round of his casual game of choice, Bejeweled 2, for 2,205 hours and 51 minutes over the course of three years. In that time, he collected 4,872,229 gems, earning the game's highest calculable score, 2,147,483,647, at which point the score display got really perplexed and went blank. (Check out a video of Mike's achievement after the jump.) According to PopCap, Leyde is the first person to ever "beat" Bejeweled 2. That's one way of looking at it, we suppose. Another way of looking at it is to say that everyone else who's ever played Bejeweled 2 is a quitter. Yeah, that's right. Why don't you follow through with something for once in your life? Sheesh.
Microsoft takes both PopCap Arcade collections to Japan
Microsoft recently turned its eyes to the east and decided, you know what, the good people of Japan look like they have way too much free time on their hands. Its solution for their overabundance of recreational opportunities was one we've become very familiar with over the past few years: The company will bring both volumes of the PopCap Arcade collection for Xbox 360 over to Japan in a single bundle, retailing for 3,990 yen ($43). This one, malevolent disc contains within its circular borders a cornucopia of time-devouring casual classics: Bejeweled 2, Zuma, Feeding Frenzy, Astropop, Heavy Weapon, Feeding Frenzy 2, and Peggle. By our estimation, Japan should get back to being productive sometime in the middle of 2014. [Via Siliconera]
Plants vs. Zombies breaks records on the iPhone
PopCap has released some sales information on their latest iPhone game, Plants vs. Zombies, and it's a runaway hit: the game has sold over 300,000 copies in just the nine days it's been out on the App Store, which means the company has garnered over $1 million in sales already. Very impressive -- first, we had an app make a million total, then a company was making a million a month, and now PopCap has done the same in just over a week. So what's their secret? It's a high quality game, first of all, and PopCap has a reputation for making those already. Second, the game itself had a fairly high profile even before release, since it was extremely successful on the PC as well. And finally, you have to think that the price figures in as well -- I thought the game would sell for PopCap's usual $5, but they actually sold it two dollars less than that. They'd probably have still made a lot of money, but I don't know if they'd be talking about 300,000 sales at a price just two dollars higher. Then again, the game is already available for free online, so maybe the quality and PopCap's profile played a bigger part than the price did (they also trumpet the fact that Bejeweled 2 is also one of the top five grossing apps on the App Store). Congrats to PopCap on all their success. Oh, and our free time called, too. It surrenders.
Bejeweled celebrates 10th birthday, tops 50m units sold
Can you believe that Bejeweled has been around for a decade? It seems like only yesterday when we accidentally sunk our first afternoon into gem-matching ... and then another ... and another -- oh where has the time gone? According to PopCap, a 10-month celebration of the puzzle game's decade of dominance has commenced. Throughout 2010, a slew of community events will be held, like the first official Bejeweled competition, and new installments in the franchise will be released. The Bejeweled creator has also served up some starting statistics, including word that the various installments in the franchise have collectively sold more than 50 million units. By PopCap's calculation, a copy of Bejeweled is purchased every 4.3 seconds. By our calculation, eight people bought Bejeweled in the time it took you to read this post. Maybe more, if your reading comprehension could use some work.
PopCap bringing Bejeweled 2, Peggle, and more to PSN
While Xbox Live Arcade enthusiasts have been enjoying some of these titles for a while now, PopCap has finally hopped on the PSN bandwagon to bring select titles to Sony's network through a partnership with Sony Online Entertainment. Bejeweled 2, Zuma, Heavy Weapon, Peggle, and Feeding Frenzy will all be coming to the PlayStation Network. But hey, even though PSN users are late to the party, at least getting some of those Trophies won't be incredibly impossible, especially in the case of Bejeweled 2.Bejeweled 2 will be available today on the PlayStation Store for $9.99 (plus applicable taxes). The rest will follow "soon thereafter," so keep an eye on Joystiq to find out exactly when.%Gallery-43427%
Trophies: Bejeweled 2
0 Platinum 1 Gold 4 Silver 7 Bronze Difficulty: Moderate Online Trophies? No Time to Completion: 10 hours DLC Trophies? No View Trophy List Read More About the Game %Gallery-43427%
Bejeweled 2 rated by ESRB
Bejeweled 2 might not be a hardcore gamer's kind of game, but it's coming our way nonetheless. The ESRB has rated the PS3 title "E" for everyone recently giving notice that a game was in the works for the system. Digging further, IGN has spoken with devs PopCap Games to which a rep had confirmed the game's existence. For those of you who don't know about the title, it's a quick puzzler where players need to align three like-colored jewels to chain up a high score. For those of you who do know the game, thankfully you won't have to play it on your cell phone or Yahoo! ever again -- it'll be right here on your PS3. Prices and dates are as yet to be revealed, though reader DeforMAKulizer has notified us that PSN ads for Bejeweled 2 have been making the rounds. This suggests that the game might not be too far off.
Retail boxart for Xbox Live Arcade: Unplugged
German site Gamefront.de managed to bag some shots of the relatively uninspiring retail packaging of Xbox Live Arcade: Unplugged. The pack includes offline versions of Geometry Wars, Texas Hold'em, Wik, Bejeweled 2, Outpost Kaloki X, Hardwood Backgammon, a free 1-month Gold membership, 100 free Microsoft points, and should be available in early September.We realize that trying to package six games together limits the freedom you have to be creative, but maybe the design team should have taken a look at Microsoft's parody of their own box designs. Simple? Yes. Attractive? Noooo!!![Via BritishGaming]
