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From Dust breathes life into XBLA activity charts, followed by Bastion
With a little help from the Summer of Arcade promotion, not to mention the involvement of gaming industry legend Eric Chahi, Xbox Live Arcade's From Dust managed to top Major Nelson's XBLA activity charts during its release week, followed by the previous week's offering, Bastion. It's so nice of them to fall in line like that! Like a bunch of obedient ducks, who are also downloadable video games. As is usually the case with the activity charts, we don't know exactly how many full purchases From Dust managed to pull in. We can't be the only ones that enjoy destroying the whole world with a thousand natural disasters at once.
Ubisoft bringing Assassins, Rabbids, and Future Soldiers to Gamescom
Sure, said assassins, rabbids, and future soldiers will arrive in video game form, but there's at least an air of danger in Ubisoft's Gamescom lineup. The French publisher revealed its German cavalry this week, saying that all titles will be available either in hands-on versions or hands-off presentations. From Dust (released on consoles thus far), Far Cry 3, Might & Magic Heroes VI, and Rayman Origins will be on site. Ubi will also hold a roundtable discussion titled, "Is Online Gaming Changing How We Create?" and featuring "creative leaders from Ubisoft's online teams. It'll be open to press, Ubisoft partners and the show's trade visitors. It's not necessarily bad news for you, Joe Public. While we're busy watching the roundtable, you could be jamming on some Anno 2070!
From Dust PC gets Ubisoft DRM, Steam pre-purchase bonus
For being such wildly different games, From Dust and Driver: San Francisco sure have a lot in common. They were both recently delayed, for example, and now news has hit that From Dust will follow Driver's lead by making use of Ubisoft's ubiquitous "Ubisoft Online Service" digital rights management platform. Unlike Driver, however, no announcement was made regarding From Dust's DRMyness; Steam's now-live pre-purchase page unceremoniously broke the news to the PC gaming community. The controversial DRM platform requires a permanent internet connection in order to play any game it governs, and while the company has loosened restrictions on high-profile games in the past, it's unclear whether or not history will repeat itself. For now, take solace in knowing that your pre-purchase will net you a "Mask of the Shaman" item for Team Fortress 2.
Get From Dust a day early, snag The Maw for free [update: ITSP and Fruit Ninja pulled]
Much the same as the Microsoft Store deal last week, those who use the store to purchase this week's Summer of Arcade entry, From Dust, will also receive The Maw for free. That's not surprising. What is surprising, is that Microsoft Store purchase of From Dust can be redeemed right now, the day before it officially arrives on Xbox Live Arcade. Even though we already own The Maw, we decided to give it a try -- so deep is our love for you -- and, sure enough, we successfully redeemed a code for From Dust. Those wishing to hop on the XBLA God-simulator bandwagon a little early can do so right here. Update: Reader Tom pointed out that Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet and Fruit Ninja Kinect are also available early from the MS Store, and also come with free copies of The Maw. Want proof? Here you go: ITSP, Fruit Ninja Kinect. We're going to look really foolish when Microsoft takes those down, but they both work as of right now. Update 2: Microsoft has pulled both Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet and Fruit Ninja Kinect from the Microsoft Store. [Thanks, Andy K.]
From Dust review: It's hard out here for a god
"Why does God let bad things happen?" It's perhaps the toughest question for people of faith to answer. How is it that a loving deity, who cares equally about all his creations, let some of them suffer so terribly? For whatever strengths or faults it has, From Dust has allowed me to find the answer to this most vexing of issues. I would like to share that answer with you now. God lets bad things happen because he honestly forgot he put the exploding tree there. %Gallery-124652%
From Dust PC launch delayed one month, available Aug. 17
Eric Chahi's upcoming experiment in nature manipulation, From Dust, won't arrive on PCs until mid-August. The company confirmed as much to Joystiq this afternoon, specifically noting, "From Dust will hit XBLA this Wednesday and will release on PC on Wednesday, August 17." That's just three weeks until the game arrives on PC -- more than enough time to practice your lava redirection and bridge carving techniques with a mouse.
From Dust moves From Xbox Live to PC on July 27
PC gamers have cut their teeth on world-building strategy titles since the dawn of time -- it makes sense, then, that Out of this World creator Eric Chahi's upcoming god game, From Dust, will arrive on the PC day-and-date with its Xbox Live counterpart. If you've got a hankering for cultivating a tribal island paradise and then volcanoing it to the ground -- or, more likely, a hankering for more Chahi -- you can grab the game from the usual digital vendors on July 27 for $14.99. If you're still confused about what From Dust actually is, we can't say we blame you. Check out the developer diary above to get a brief tutorial of how your Godlike powers operate. We didn't see any plagues of locusts in said video, but we're assuming that particular ability unlocks later in the game.
XBLA Summer of Arcade releases dated, buy them all for free Crimson Alliance
We knew which games were going to be part of this year's XBLA "Summer of Arcade" -- but not when. Today, Microsoft shared that information, allowing you to plan your season around buying video games. The Summer kicks off with the isometric action-adventure Bastion on July 20, for 1200 Microsoft Points ($15.) Eric Chahi's volcanic god game, From Dust, follows on July 27 for the same price. On August 3, Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet will be available, also for 1200 MSP. August 10 brings a refreshing virtual fruit salad in the form of Fruit Ninja Kinect, for 800 Points. Finally, Toy Soldiers: Cold War arrives on August 17 for 1200 Points. Like previous years, there's a bonus for buying all five Summer of Arcade titles, and this year it's a free copy of Crimson Alliance when it's released on September 7 (for 1200 Points). Fruit Ninja Kinect's inclusion in the promotion means that you must have a Kinect in order to take advantage of the free bonus. That's a bummer of Arcade for those who haven't picked up Microsoft's camera yet.
OnLive Player App for iPad and Android brings tablet/TV integration, ala Wii U
Cloud gaming poster child OnLive took the opportunity at E3 to show off its tablet-bound OnLive Player application, coming to both iPad and Android devices "later this year," while providing "far higher performance, richer gameplay and deeper social integration than any console announced for 2012." Yeah, that's a not-so-subtle dig at the Wii U. While the OnLive Viewer app currently available doesn't allow for actually playing OnLive on a tablet, the upcoming Player app "will enable gameplay of virtually all OnLive games on an iPad and Android tablet with touch or OnLive's new Universal Wireless Controller." Demoed in the video below is Ubisoft's From Dust, which accepts touch-based input on the tablet applications. Even more notable, considering Nintendo's latest console announcement, is news that the OnLive Player app will allow "the tablet to be used as a touch and motion controller combined with an HDTV (or PC/Mac if preferred)." The tablet can even enable "both synchronized or independent video on the tablet and HDTV screen, enabling combined gameplay with tablet and HDTV" or, more like the concepts we saw of Wii U, "separate gameplay on tablet and HDTV." Take a tour with OnLive prez Steve Perlman after the break; we'll stop by OnLive's E3 booth tomorrow for a tour of our own.
Xbox Live Summer of Arcade 2011 kicks off July 20
Can't have summer without hot new Xbox Live games, right? Microsoft has announced its line-up for the warmer months, kicking off July 20 -- strangely, in an email and not, you know, during its E3 2011 press conference. Regardless, a total of five games will be on offer. No exact time table for the games was announced nor prices but, hey, at least we know what's coming. The first game listed is Toy Soldiers: Cold War, a sequel to one of 2010's most lucrative Xbox Live Arcade games. The next game listed is Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet, Fuelcell's stylish UFO simulator, followed by Fruit Ninja Kinect, a flail-tastic port of Halfbrick's darling mobile (and soon, Facebook!) title. Next we have Bastion, a game we suggest you all should keep an eye on. Finally, rounding out the list of games is From Dust, Eric Chahi's god game. An impressive list, to say the least. It's important to know that this is simply how Microsoft listed the games in its press email and not indicative of when each title will launch throughout the promotion.
From Dust videos are molten hot
From Dust presents a tropical world full of pristine waters and undulating sands, populated by a tribe bedecked in starkly abstract masks. All of which can get wrecked by a volcano at any moment, as demonstrated after the break. Eric Chahi loves volcanoes.
From Dust dev diary directs our attention to the art direction
This latest From Dust dev diary reveals a gameworld inspired by out-of-this-world locales: from the the lagoon archipelagos of Polynesia to the central Sahara Desert and on into the mind of prolific French sci-fi author Laurent Genefort.
Sales will dictate if From Dust gets multiplayer, level editor
Eric Chahi, designer of the action-adventure classic Out of This World and Ubisoft's upcoming downloadable god game From Dust, has told Joystiq that sales of his latest creation will determine if it receives additional modes and content. "For the first release, it will be a solo experience," Chahi told us, explaining that, "We plan to have a major release where we can enhance the experience by adding an editor and a multiplayer mode, if the success is there." "Xbox Live Arcade, PSN and Steam are good for us because we can offer the solo experience priced around 15 Euros or so," he added. "Then if it works we can enhance it in those ways I mentioned." Chahi confirmed that he has "many ideas" for how to expand From Dust, and that multiplayer and others already exist in some stage of development. It's good to know we weren't alone in thinking there's nothing wrong with a volcanic eruption or tsunami between friends. Chahi's latest game hits in 2011.
Interview: From Dust creator Eric Chahi and Guillaume Bunier, producer
Amidst so many Gamescom titles that seemed to tread familiar ground, Ubisoft's From Dust stood out with its impressive technology and wholly non-violent gameplay. We had a chance to speak with creative director Eric Chahi (who you may know as the creator of Out of This World) and producer Guillaume Bunier about their unique project. Read our interview past the break.
How 'From Dust' turns manipulating nature into a game
We already know quite a bit about how From Dust (née Project Dust) uses a few layers of basic elements to create a highly realistic and malleable virtual world. What's been less clear was how Eric Chahi and his team were going to make an actual game out of this lava-filled sandbox. Until today, that is, when Chahi and producer Guillaume Bunier presented the first details of From Dust's gameplay in a Gamescom demonstration.%Gallery-99786%
Project Dust, working title becomes From Dust, actual title
It seems like it was just yesterday that Ubisoft was still referring to its mysterious, Eric Chahi-led game by its working title, "Project Dust." Oh, what a difference a day makes. Introducing: From Dust, as elegantly illustrated on the above sign adorning a Ubisoft meeting room at Gamescom this morning. Perhaps the just-scribbled-in-Sharpie aesthetic was what they were going for but, in case it was an act of curious vandalism, we asked a Ubisoft press liasion who confirmed that, yes, From Dust is the official, just-announced title. Unfortunately, the above image is the closest we've been able to get to any kind of announcement from Ubisoft so you'll just have to trust us. [Update: Ubisoft has just forwarded a fact sheet for "From Dust."]
