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Monaco steals, sells one million copies
Multiplayer heist game Monaco: What's Yours Is Mine reached a new milestone this week: One million copies sold. Developer Pocketwatch Games noted via Twitter that the sales landmark doesn't include free copies it distributed during special promotions. The game launched in April 2013 on Steam and received a very positive review from Joystiq's own Jess Conditt at that time, prior to its May 2013 XBLA launch. Monaco features clean, retro-inspired visuals and the ability to partake in heists with up to three friends, each using specialized characters with unique skill sets like the Locksmith, Pickpocket and Lookout. Pocketwatch Games issued the final update for the game in April before fully unveiling its next game about a month ago, an arcade RTS called Lead to Fire. [Image: Pocketwatch Games]
Games with Gold in September: Super Time Force, Halo: Reach
Xbox Live's Games with Gold rolls into a new month with Super Time Force and Crimson Dragon free on Xbox One starting on September 1. Super Time Force takes the place of August's Strike Suit Zero, and Crimson Dragon carries over into another month of high-flying, scaly action. Xbox 360 Gold members get Monaco: What's Yours is Mine for free from September 1 - 15, and Halo: Reach for free from September 16 - 30. Happy shooting, flying, sneaking and reaching this September! [Image: Capy]
Indie Pinata sale invites you to take a swing at similar games
The Indie Pinata sale offers discounts on 10 Steam games hand-picked by independent developers, available through July 26 at 10AM PT. The catch: You have to purchase or already own one of the games in the sale to get the discounts. That Steam backlog is looking pretty handy right about now. The 10 lucky games are Monaco, The Bridge, Flockers, MouseCraft, 10,000,000, Super Splatters, Dungeon Hearts, Jack Lumber, Triple Town and Contraption Maker. Indie Pinata is put on by Crunching Koalas, the team behind MouseCraft, so this sale features games similar in style to that memorable, puzzle-y tone. "Thousands of games available on Steam make it difficult for enthusiasts of certain game genres to find games that they really enjoy," Crunching Koalas writes in the sale's FAQ. "That's why we teamed up with developers that create games that are somehow similar to MouseCraft. Games we have chosen can be similar in terms of graphics, gameplay mechanics or general feel and we think that if anybody owns at least one title from our list, there's a high chance they will like every other game from our campaign. This is our proposition on how curated storefronts should look like." [Image: Crunching Koalas]
Monaco's final update is live now with a weekend Steam sale
The final, free update to Monaco is live now, including the "brutally difficult" fourth campaign that finishes the Gentleman's story. The update is called Monaco: Fin, and it truly is the end of Monaco, at least in the sense of regular updates. Creator Andy Schatz describes Monaco's development story as follows: "I designed Monaco on paper in 2003 when I was still an employee of a much bigger (now defunct) game developer. Development started in October of 2009. Andy Nguyen joined the team in May 2011. The game launched in April 2013. One year later, nearly a million copies of the game sold, and it's time to move on. It's time to bring something new into the world. It's time to start over. It's time for us to earn your attention again." Schatz and his studio, Pocketwatch Games, is now working on Armada, an RTSMOBA with a series of twists to the genres. It's still early in development, but at GDC Schatz told us that his current concept places Armada in the warrior heaven of Valhalla, with players able to battle creatures across all of time, from dinosaurs to robots. That's not the final concept, but it was one Schatz said he'd been kicking around for a while. "I want to do the thing with RTS that we did with Monaco, with the stealth genre, and that's constrain the control set in order to make the actual, physical interaction easy to pick up without limiting the complexity of the game itself," Schatz said. "Monaco's a pretty complex game, right? But there's one button and two analog sticks. It's accessible – not accessible in a way that's for casuals. It's something you can just jump into and instantly start addressing the game design, rather than the physical interaction." Monaco is 75 percent off on Steam this weekend, $3.75, through April 7.
What's yours is mine: How Monaco made player feedback its own
When players first tried out Monaco, the neon-colored heist game by Pocketwatch Games, their feedback was at odds with some of the game's fundamental rules. In a talk today at the Game Developer's Conference in San Francisco, level designer Andy Nguyen illustrated how the developer listened to players without compromising Pocketwatch's vision for a new spin on stealth. To the uninformed observer, it might even appear as if Monaco simply plugged its ears and shook criticism off. Monaco was thrust into the hands of 400 beta testers, some of whom felt obstructed by the strict line-of-sight vision granted to the game's would-be burglars. They wanted to see the whole map, not just what was in front of them, and plan the heist looking from the top down. "When i think about that, it reminds me of the idea of traditional stealth, and what traditional stealth means to people," Nguyen said, drawing a comparison to another breakout hit in the stealth genre, Mark of the Ninja. Unlike that game, however, Monaco wasn't positioned as a game about observation and flawless execution of the plan. Like a heist film, the goal was to foster frantic escapes, improvisation and exciting moments-gone-wrong.
Monaco tops 750K sold, makes off with $215K in Humble Bundle 11
Sales of the neon stealth game Monaco have hit 750,000 following its inclusion in Humble Indie Bundle 11. During the bundle bonanza, Monaco earned approximately $215,000, developer Andy Schatz writes in a rundown on his blog. "That's a nice hefty sum," he adds. Monaco was one of the "beat the average" games, meaning customers had to pay more than roughly $4.70 to get it. The entire bundle earned $2.3 million from 494,000 units, and of those, 370,000 were "beat the average" purchases that included Monaco. Most customers chose to distribute their payment with the default settings of 65 percent to developers, 20 percent to charity and 15 to Humble, and with six developers plus three mid-week additions, Schatz walked with 8 percent of the total payments. During the Humble sale, Schatz tracked Monaco's Steam numbers to see if sales there would drop – and they didn't. "Despite the huge number of units that we sold in the Humble Bundle, it doesn't appear that our presence in the HIB affected our day-to-day Steam revenue," he writes. "Why is this? My guess is that customers tend to be loyal to sales channels." Schatz told Joystiq near the beginning of Humble Indie Bundle 11 that he'd never been disappointed with Monaco's sales, even though XBLA numbers fell below his expectations. "Prior to HIB11, we had sold about 375,000 units across all platforms, with XBLA accounting for about 10 percent of those," he said. "Part of the strength of our PC sales have been the huge free updates (of which we have planned one final one, which will wrap up the storyline of the Gentleman and his crew). No plans at the moment for a sequel; I'm actually just beginning work on our next title." [Image: Pocketwatch Games]
Monaco breaks 500,000 sales on back of Humble Bundle inclusion
Top-down heister Monaco: What's Yours is Mine reached the milestone of 500,000 sales this week, no doubt thanks to its inclusion in Humble Indie Bundle 11. Andy Schatz's Pocketwatch Games trumpeted the news on Twitter, saying total sales are around the 520,000 mark, and only include about half of the total HIB 11 sales - at the time of writing the bundle's sold 270,000 odd. Monaco is a "Beat the Average" purchase in HIB 11, meaning it's a bonus for those who spend more than the average spent on the bundle. Monaco hit and ran onto Xbox 360, PC, Mac, and Linux last year, but eight months ago the sales news wasn't as encouraging. Back then, Schatz noted he was disappointed with the game's Xbox Live sales, conceding the parts played by an underwhelming demo along with the delay that prevented a simultaneous release alongside PC. That said, there should be plenty more Monaco sales to hit over the next fortnight, with Humble Indie Bundle 11 not set to conclude until March 3. [Image: Pocketwatch Games]
Destiny, Monaco, BioShock Infinite talks round out GDC 2014 panels
Interesting art talks looking at character customization and animation workflow for Destiny will be hosted by Bungie at this year's Game Developers Conference, which goes down in San Francisco next month. Irrational Games (what's left of it, anyway) will provide a breakdown of how Elizabeth's AI-controlled movements were created for BioShock Infinite and a panel from Monaco designer Andy Nguyen will address how developer Pocketwatch Games completely streamlined its game post-launch after poring over player data. If you've ever wondered how Bethesda created your favorite dungeons in Skyrim and Fallout 3, a panel on iterative level design will attempt to provide insight. A panel from two-man team Vlambeer will offer a behind-the-curtain look at the life of Nuclear Throne, which went from game jam prototype to early access offering and, later this year, full product launch. Another potentially interesting talk, headed up by Sean Vanaman, may finally give us our first glimpse at what Campo Santo is working on. These are just a handful of the dozens of interesting engagements going down at this year's GDC, held in San Francisco from March 17 - 21, 2014. A full list of the panels and workshops have been published online for all attendees – if you're interested in attending, you can purchase passes through GDC's website. [Image: Bungie]
Humble Indie Bundle 11: Guacamelee, The Swapper, Antichamber and more
There's a very tempting collection on sale over at Humble Bundle right now. Humble Indie Bundle 11 tosses together four indie treasures: Guacamelee, Dust: An Elysian Tail, Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams and The Swapper. Pay more than the average and you'll also get Antichamber and Monaco: What's Yours Is Mine. Guacamelee is Drinkbox Studios' lucha libre-inspired action platformer, while Dust: An Elysian Tail is Dean Dodrill's beautifully-animated action role-playing game. Giana Sisters, from Black Forest Games, is a difficult 2D platformer, The Swapper is a lauded puzzle game built around a cloning device, Antichamber is a psychological first-person exploration game and Monaco is all about pulling off heists with up to three other buddies. This bundle will be live for the next two weeks, and the Humble Bundle folks assure us new games will be added before the sale period ends. In order to secure those additional games, you'll need to pay beyond the average – which is hovering around $4 as of right now. [Image: Drinkbox Studios]
Best of the Rest: Jess' picks of 2013
Team Joystiq is barging into 2014 with a celebration of last year's best games. Keep reading throughout the week to see our assembly of ingenious indies and triple-A triumphs. Skulls of the Shogun I have a pre-existing penchant for human skulls as decoration, so maybe that's why Skulls of the Shogun still resonates so deeply with me, despite it launching way back at the beginning of the year – before GDC, before E3, before Gamescom, before the reveals and launches of two next-gen consoles, before the holiday madness. Through all of that, Skulls of the Shogun remains a purely joyful, fun strategy game, complete with morbid humor, accessible mechanics and a lovely Saturday-morning cartoon style. Developer 17-Bit has a precise hand, and the team's attention to detail and flow makes Skulls of the Shogun sing across platforms: Xbox 360, Windows 8, Windows Phone, Steam and iOS. Skulls of the Shogun started the year off in the right way for me, so it's fitting to give it another nod at the end of 2013. Cheers, skull-chewers.
Monaco's 'The Architect's Patch' shortens, streamlines the game
A free update for Monaco: What's Yours is Mine, which has sold over 275,000 copies since its debut in April, adds an "Enhanced" play mode full of shorter, more streamlined maps that developer Pocketwatch Games hopes will make for an overall better experience. And if you're a purist, relax: You can still play the old-style maps in "Classic" mode. This update eliminates 'huge parts of our least favorite levels," Pocketwatch Games says in its announcement post. On top of tweaking the campaign, The Architect's Patch also adds a new campaign section, automatically unlocked for all players, full of three PVP missions and some new mechanics for the base campaigns – like doors that require certain keys to proceed and roaming NPCs who carry cash and items. A lot of the cuts come from Andy Nguyen, the level designer on Monaco. After the game shipped, he had a long list of gripes with each level – as did players – and so this update was borne. It's an update fueled by stats: Pocketwatch noticed less than ten percent of players who finished the first level actually made it through and completed the last level of the first campaign. The developer is hoping that'll change with The Architect's Patch, which is available now on Steam.
Frozenbyte's 'Huge Seal' promotion discounts 35 indie games, gives away Steam keys
Trine 2 developer Frozenbyte kicked off a "Huge Seal" promotion, joining up with more than two dozen other indie developers to offer discounts on 35 PC and Mac games. To take advantage of the "build your own indie sale," buyers need to log in to the sale's site with their Steam accounts to access five coupons from the list of participating games, seen after the break. Among the indie games on sale are Mark of the Ninja ($7.50), Monaco: What's Yours is Mine ($6.60), FTL: Faster than Light ($5.00), Terraria ($5.00) and Thomas Was Alone ($2.50). For every purchase, buyers can pick another game from the list to buy at a discounted rate. Buying three games grants players one free Steam key from the discounted games at random. The sale is good until Sunday, November 24.
Monaco celebrates successful Linux infiltration with Steam sale
Monaco: What's Yours is Mine has picked the Linux lock today. The free update implements a smattering of new content, including a Zombie mode and new mini-campaign. To celebrate this new update and platform, Andy Schatz's co-op stealth game is down to $6 on Steam. A four-pack, which includes one copy for you and three copies you can gift to Steam friends (not only generous, but also useful given the game's multiplayer nature), is $18. The Steam sale ends on Wednesday, October 23 at 10am PT. Monaco, which is presented in a highly-stylized top-down view, stars eight crooks with varying abilities who team up to infiltrate secure locations and rob them of precious goods. Security cameras, guards and locked doors are just a few of the obstacles impeding player progress.
Monaco hits Linux on Monday with free, new content
Monaco is coming to Linux on Monday, October 21, breaking down another barrier to entry for crafty players. Monaco is already out on Xbox 360, PC and Mac, and it even has a European boxed collector's edition because it's a high roller. The Linux edition will have "a ton of free/new content," according to the announcement. Monaco on Linux is especially exciting given Valve's recent announcements: SteamOS, a Linux-powered operating system, and Steam Machines, in-home streaming and gaming boxes running on SteamOS. Every new system needs at least one great game, and now Steam Machines have Monaco. We certainly think Monaco falls into the "great" category. All technical speculation aside, the Monaco Linux announcement comes with a picture of a chibi Redhead in a penguin suit, which is adorable.
Monaco breaking into German stores with collector's edition
The Mole has been quietly polishing his Freedom Spoon, waiting for the opportune moment to strike the walls of every German retailer – and it's almost time. Monaco is getting a PC retail collector's edition in Germany this year from publisher Headup Games, the same company behind German collector's editions of Super Meat Boy, QUBE, The Basement Collection, Terraria, Limbo, Frozen Synapse and SOL Exodus. We spotted a Monaco poster at Headup's Gamescom booth and the publisher said it was working on the German collector's edition, with another company figuring out a UK boxed version. Andy Schatz, Monaco mastermind, said he's excited about launching in the UK and Germany and he hopes to enter more markets later on. Keep your eyes and Freedom Spoons sharp, everyone.
Game Music Bundle 5: Monaco, FTL, Fez, Gunpoint, more
If you recently binged on EA's Humble Origin Bundle of AAA games, Game Music Bundle 5 might help you recall the finer moments of some recent indie highlights. Game Music Bundle 5's pay-what-you-want pricing strategy is comparable to that of the Humble Bundles, but proceeds exclusively help musicians this time around. Any donation below $10 nets you the soundtracks for Monaco: What's Yours Is Mine, FTL: Faster Than Light, FEZ, Gunpoint, World of Goo, and Leisure Suit Larry: Reloaded. Upping the ante to $10 or more grants the previously mentioned soundtracks plus additional music from FEZ, Monaco, Frog Fractions, Little Inferno, Super Panda Adventures, Marbel Time, Hero of Many, Me and My Dinosaur 2, Drox and Anodyne. Holy music, right? Beyond the offered albums, prizes are available to reward the highest donations. The eight most generous contributors will receive a Steam key for Monaco and a promotional poster for the game. The top five will earn the Monaco key as well as a copy of the Leisure Suit Larry score signed by composers Austin Wintory and Al Lowe. Lastly, the king of donations will win the previous prizes as well as a FEZ shirt signed by Disasterpeace, composer of FEZ's soundtrack.
Monaco dev 'very disappointed' with XBLA sales performance
Responding to fan questions on Reddit, Monaco: What's Yours is Mine developer Andy Schatz claims that his studio's efforts in porting its co-op stealth game to the Xbox 360 were "largely wasted," due to unexpectedly low sales. Schatz theorizes that many factors contributed to Monaco's poor sales performance on Xbox Live Arcade, including a weak demo and a last-minute delay that prevented a simultaneous release on PC platforms. Schatz revealed that a widespread bug related to online play proved especially troublesome, due to his team's inability to reproduce the issue on developer hardware. "I was never depending on the Xbox being our primary revenue generator, but I was very disappointed in Xbox sales nonetheless," Schatz said. "We put a ton of effort porting the game, and to have that effort be largely wasted was really disappointing." The PC version of Monaco is currently taking part in Steam's Summer Sale, and will be featured in an upcoming community vote.
PSA: Limbo now on iOS, Monaco moves to Mac
If you're arachnophobic, you may take issue with having a giant spider on your phone. Limbo, Playdead's breakout video game with legs, is now available in the App store for $5 for iPad and iPhone. "Dark, disturbing, yet eerily beautiful, Limbo is a world that deserves to be explored," our own Richard Mitchell concluded in his review of the original Xbox Live Arcade release back in 2010. Another indie hit, Monaco, is on Mac today through Steam for $15. If you already own Monaco on Windows you can get the Mac version right away through Steamplay. The cooperative heist game also comes with a level editor with Steam Workshop support.
Andy Schatz lets slip scrapped competitive modes for Monaco
Andy Schatz took some time off from thievery in his recent release, Monaco, and sat down with the fine people of Reddit to answer all of the questions they threw at him, such as, "Which features didn't make it into the game?" "Cops and Robbers, and Thief vs Thief," Schatz replied. "We wanted to add two additional competitive game modes to the game. We got them to playable, but we discovered that for both modes the balance didn't really work within the existing levels." Thief vs Thief had players compete in a single stage, to see who could collect the most coins, grab the trophy and get out first – but the player who left the gate first had a huge advantage, sucking up all of the coins, and the mode didn't turn out to be as fun as Schatz had hoped, he said. Cops and Robbers added a police officer to every level, but the early stages were too easy and the later stages too difficult. With some tweaks, Schatz said he hoped to bring Cops and Robbers to Monaco "at some point," possibly as DLC. Monaco's characters evolved along with the gameplay, and Schatz described how each of them spawned, early in development: "The Gentleman used to be a hypnotist, The Lookout used to be the Prowler (parkour expert), The Mole used to be The Muscle, The Pickpocket used to be The Rat (could rat out teammates to save himself). The Redhead had a taser or a pistol at one point. The Pickpocket started out as dwarf twins instead of a man with a monkey." Stranger things. Once Monaco's final touches were all settled, Schatz said he had an idea to develop a "good console RTS (or at least simple-controls RTS) that is as strategically as deep as the competitive RTSes." First, he has to work on the Monaco level editor, expansions and maybe more ports – he singled out Vita and PS4, while Mac and Linux ports are already on the books.
PSA: Monaco unlocks XBLA, out now
Monaco: What's Yours is Mine has finally scarpered onto the Xbox Live Marketplace. After failing to launch last month thanks to a bug that caused disconnects during online play, the top-down indie sneaker is nab-able right now at a cool 1200 MSP. Going by our review, at that price it's a steal (HA). Jess, a self-confessed crappy crook, gave Monaco four and a half stars, deeming it a "classic heist game for a modern audience."
