Braid
Latest
Indie designers: Experimental Gameplay 2009 accepting submissions
Budding indie designers with far-out ideas: Braid creator Jonathan Blow brings word via his blog that submissions for the Experimental Gameplay 2009 sessions at GDC are now being accepted. Having provided a launching pad for indie hits such as Braid, flOw, and Everyday Shooter, the Experimental Gameplay gathering is a chance for brilliant gameplay-driven concepts to get attention, in the form of 10-15 minute presentations by their creators. Braid (shown) was first presented during the 2006 sessions, well before David Hellman provided its distinctive art style. It epitomizes one fundemental the session organizers are looking for: novel game mechanics. Others include emergent gameplay, interactive storytelling, and innovative UI. Submission guidelines are available at the Experimental Gameplay site. The deadline for entries is February 16, 2009. [Via Braid-Game.com]
FanPoll'08: XBLA Game of the Year
This year has brought us a slew of incredible Xbox Live Arcade titles so whittling the list down to five contenders is a difficult task. In the end the top honors went to the five titles we felt delivered on all promises made and showcased greatness, even through their shortcomings.Read more about these five nominees:A Kingdom for KeflingsBionic Commando RearmedBraidGeometry Wars 2Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix Voting closes at 12:01am on December 30, 2008. Results will be revealed on December 30, 2008. <a href ="http://answers.polldaddy.com/poll/1226539/" >FanPoll'08: XBLA Game of the Year</a> <br/> <span style="font-size:9px;"> (<a href ="http://www.polldaddy.com"> surveys</a>)</span>
Braid to bend time on the PC in 2009
The Xbox Live Arcade golden child that has been racking up a few 2008 award honors, Braid, will be making its way to the PC early next year. According to the official website, Braid will be releasing to the PC between February and March 2009. Interestingly enough, the PC version was supposed to debut this past October, but was pushed back due to the huge amount of holiday blockbuster titles. Also, talk of a Mac and a PS3 version is out there, but only if "Sony is interested in the game." Take comfort, fanboys, we already have our Braid.[Via Joystiq]
Braid coming to PC in Q1 2009
The official Braid blog reveals that a PC version of the XBLA darling should be released between February and March of 2009. Braid on PC was originally planned for mid-October, but a decision was made to hold off due to all the blockbusters being released at the end of the year.There is also talk of a "native code" Mac version to be released soon after the PC, and a PS3 version later if "Sony is interested in the game." It sounds like the code for Braid's PC debut is done and is just being held off for marketing purposes. We've placed developer Jonathan Blow's address after the break for PC owners who want to stop by his place and ask for it personally.
Chew on these successful XBLA stats and figures
Feeling a bit reflective, today Microsoft put out a press release with the sole reason of gloating about the success of the Xbox Live Arcade over the years and especially in 2008. Read over the bulleted list and try to guesstimate how many Microsoft points have been spent on XBLA titles over the years. 1.25 billion Gamerscore unlocked to date. 100 million achievements earned to date. 60+ XBLA titles score 75 or higher on metacritic. Braid is highest rated XBLA game of all time. 110 million trial XBLA games have been downloaded to date. The Summer of Arcade saw a 58% increase in unique members purchasing game titles. August broke revenue record by 67%.
Microsoft releases some XBLA stats, teases 2009 releases
While Puzzle Arcade and a premium virtual fireplace might seem like rather listless holiday gifts, Microsoft today gave us our favorite present: numbers! Here are some statistics about Xbox Live Arcade, care of the Gamerscore blog: Over 1.25 billion Gamerscore points spread out over 100 million Achievements earned in XBLA games this year, for an average of 12.5 points per Achievement. More than 60 XBLA games this year scored over 75 on Metacritic, with Braid leading the pack, followed by Geometry Wars 2, Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix and Portal: Still Alive (this year's low point: Frogger 2 at 37%). 110 million trial games total have been downloaded on XBLA. The Summer of Arcade series (also known as XBLAugust) contributed to a 58 percent rise in unique members purchasing titles and was also the most profitable month for XBLA, breaking the previous monthly revenue record by 67 percent. It's as important to point out here what's not published in Microsoft's release: sales data. Our guess is, as demonstrated in 2007, we'll see the a list of the top titles sometime in January. The Gamerscore blog also teased what games would "ring in the new year": Lode Runner, The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai, South Park, Puzzle Quest: Galactrix and R-Type Dimensions. Here's hoping "ring in the new year" isn't PR speak for "anytime between January 1 and December 31, 2009."
We love the Ex Box Boys' new Braid tune
Yeah, we've heard all the jokes. "Braidstiq," you say with that little sneer, belittling us for our blind devotion to all things with even a remote relation to Jonathan Blow's exquisite little game. And ... well, this isn't going to change your opinion of us in the slightest: We're really enjoying the Ex Box Boys' new Braid-based tune, "Counting You Up," which you can hear at their site right here.There's no downloading yet, which is a bummer: We can't wait to hear the secret messages when you play it backwards.[Via Braid blog]
Soulja Boy tells 'em he wants to make video games
When rapper Soulja Boy is done being a one-hit wonder international superstar he's got some big dreams. He wants to go to college, he wants to start his own clothing line, own his own shoe line and, as you can see at the 2:33 mark in the video below the break, design video games. We know we're going to get a glut of commenters decrying his intentions, but we think it's a great, great idea.For one, he says in the video he once dreamed of being a Flash animator (really), though he admits in the same breath that "sounds kinda gay" (also really). For two, did you have the design insight to know that Braid was actually for people who smoke or people who drink? We think not.[Via Pushing Play]
'Summer of Arcade' behind XBLA's best month yet
Newly released figures show that the "Summer of Arcade" wasn't just a windfall for gamers; it made Microsoft some serious scratch. MS reports that it saw a 58% increase in Arcade title purchases during the five-week "event," amounting to a 67% increase in revenue generated by XBLA in August – a new monthly record for the service. The company itself acknowledges that the quality of the titles was crucial to the gains. "The reason for all of this success? The games were really good," it said in a press release. Xbox Live general manager, Marc Whitten, promises that, "The focus on quality games doesn't stop with the Summer of Arcade." So ... we're due for a "Fall and Winter of Arcade," then? Whitten called out upcoming XBLA releases such as Portal: Still Alive, South Park, and R-Type Dimensions as examples of a new wave of potential Arcade hits. "We have plenty more great titles coming out in the next few months and beyond that we think will continue to fuel this incredible momentum," he said. Wait, back up ... did he mean the R-Type Dimensions that hasn't been officially announced yet?
Blow says XBLA's Braid is 'feasible' on PSP
If you've got an Xbox 360, you've most likely have 1) heard of Braid and just how amazing it is or 2) already have it and enjoying it as we write this. Needless to say, those without the green-lit box have been sidelined and left curious like a child peering into a toystore window. However, Braid's main man Jonathan Blow gives the starry-eyed child in all of us a brief glint of hope as he says a portable version of the game would be most feasible on the PSP if ever there were to be a mobile version.In a recent interview conducted by Joystiq, Blow was asked about making a handheld version of the game. He responded saying that a DS version would be out of the question and that there would be no way to control the game on an iPhone. While the answers were mostly negative for those devices, Blow had more positive things to say about a PSP version; he cited that a direct-to-download model would work smoothly as the "music streaming stuff in Braid would not work off a UMD." He did, however, say that the market for downloadable titles is still not there on the PSP -- though we'd like to differ as direct downloadable games are appearing every week. Perhaps Mr. Blow would change his mind if the downloadable services for PSP picked up steam.
Joystiq interviews Blow in a post-Braid world
Unless you haven't figured it out, we're pretty big fans of Braid on the Xbox Live Arcade. Braid's creator, Jonathan Blow, has become a household name for gamers and fellow fans at Joystiq decided to shoot a whole mess of questions his way post-release. The interview covers everything from why Blow isn't a big fan of most games to his admiration of the XBLA title Space Giraffe. Check it out.
Joystiq interview: Blow unravels Braid in postmortem
With the release of Braid, Jonathan Blow became not only the creator of one of the highest-rated Xbox 360 games of all time, but a household name, at least among gamers. Infatuated as we are with his game, we sent Blow a stack of questions that he was kind enough to answer -- everything from why there aren't many games he enjoys these days to why Space Giraffe is the best action game on XBLA. Read on.It seems like such a personal game and personal story, I'm curious how you felt the day before the game released to the public. Terrified? Excited? I was interested to see how the game would be received, but I can't say that I was super-emotional about anything. In terms of public reception -- if that turned out badly, well, I thought that it was a pretty good game for my own tastes, so that would just mean that my tastes differ pretty widely from the market's. Which isn't necessarily so bad if your goal is not to make money. (At the same time, I am pretty glad that the critical reception was highly positive, much better than I could have expected). I was definitely relieved that the game was done and was finally getting out there to an audience, though. I had been working on it for a long time.
Finally! Soulja Boy reviews Braid
Okay, we have to come clean: we haven't actually bought Braid. Yes, we dumped effusive praise upon its digital being. We even devoted an entire feature to convincing people how great it is, but still we did not buy it. Why? Because we were awaiting the learned opinion of one man. Yes, that man is (of course) Soulja Boy. We'd like to attempt to summarize his opinion of Braid but, frankly, it has a profound eloquence that cannot be captured by mere mortals like us. Suffice it to say that you're just going to have to watch it yourself. Find it after the break (it's NSFW, by the way).
Soulja Boy tells 'em about Braid
When worlds collide it's often awesome, producing something greater than the sum of two parts. But sometimes it makes something absolutely cringe worthy. Sadly, when rapper Soulja Boy discovered Braid and gave his considerate, well-reasoned and utterly profane critique (which you can watch right after the break, if you're not at work), it was one of the latter situations.Oh, and while you watch, try to decide which is more entertaining: watching Soulja Boy mistake Braid for bong time fodder or reading comments from people who are so angry at him for not "getting it."[Thanks, Kat]
Braid creator rips on WoW, talks artificial rewards and social gaming
In an interview with Gamasutra, game designer Jon Blow (who created the critically acclaimed Xbox Live Arcade game Braid) had a few things to say about World of Warcraft. His criticisms could be just as easily leveled against any Diku-based, WoW-like MMO.He began by saying that WoW employs "artificial rewards" as opposed to "natural rewards." In other words, players play WoW for achievements like leveling up that have little real meaning, and they'll sit through a lot of boredom to reach those goals. That's not an unfair analysis; leveling up is a very empty and artificial kind of catharsis. Perhaps the most controversial statements he made were related to the social aspect of the game. One of Azeroth's millions of citizens? Check out our ongoing coverage of the World of Warcraft, and be sure to touch base with our sister site WoW Insider for all your Lich King needs!
Wii Warm Up: The others
We usually use the Wii Warm Up to discuss and dissect Wii-related minutiae, but today we want to know more about your non-Nintendo gaming habits. Which other consoles do you own (current-gen or otherwise), which is your favorite (after the Wii, naturally), and what did you last play/are you currently playing through?
Zero Punctuation tangles with Braid
The latest Zero Punctuation tackles the time bending XBLA title, Braid. Yahtzee's opinion is somewhat mixed, taking note of the well designed puzzles but also noting that the game reused certain puzzles and that some puzzles require players to restart a level if failed, which Yahtzee describes as a "dick move." Another complaint is leveled at the story, which the review cites as pretentious and unnecessarily confusing. Overall though, the gameplay seems to triumph over any flaws. Check out the video after the break (NSFW due to language).
Counting Rupees: Sustainable Indies
Each week Jeff Engel and Geoff Brooks contribute Counting Rupees, a column on the business behind gaming: Braid was released just over two weeks ago to critical raves and a few complaints regarding its slightly higher than "standard" price of $15. Despite Jonathan Blow, the creator of the game, having to defend the price for essentially a full week bracketing its release, Blow has now confirmed via his blog that his Braid will probably make back enough money to allow him to work on his next game. This is certainly great news, as Braid is one of the best games to be released on Xbox Live Arcade, or if you use Metacritic, the 8th best game to be released so far on the Xbox 360. Jonathan Blow certainly deserves the chance to follow up his brilliant effort, but something about his post regarding the success of his game actually revealed a warning sign to me for indie games overall.
Control Time ... err, Tim with Braid papercraft
We were a bit caught up in Braid hysteria earlier this week, so we thought we'd table this post until the scalding heat of our passion cooled down a little bit ...And here we are! Braid artist David Hellman tipped us off to a pair of adorable Braid-themed papercraft projects depicting the game's time-manipulating hero Tim and his ubiquitous foe ... uh, Creature thing. Print out one of Tim, thirty of the Creature, figure out how to control the immutable march of time, then reenact all your favorite scenes.[Thanks, David]Source – Braid papercraft, TimSource – Braid papercraft, Creature
Blow considers rewinding time, removing Braid bugs
Whether or not we think Braid is brilliant (and we do) no game is too angelic to escape our probing eye. We dig deep to find the real dirt that the big boys don't want you to know about, like bugs. We've used our investigative skills to find out about two from a secret source who ... oh, who are we kidding? They came from Jonathan Blow, the guy who created the game.The bugs are a bit too specific to fully explain here, suffice it to say that if they hit you it's going to mean a fair amount of backtracking. They don't seem to be especially common, but they're serious for those who've been afflicted. The good news? While Jonathan Blow is spilling the beans he's also working with Microsoft on solutions.Update: Blow's posted a few temporary fixes for one of the bugs.
