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Hands-on with Windborne's early access
The breakout success of Minecraft has inspired a slew of creative sandbox games since its release in 2011, and the trend has shown no signs of dying down given the ever-increasing number of sandbox titles hitting the market. Hidden Path Entertainment's in-development title Windborne is certainly one such game, and at first glance one might be tempted to write it off as a clone of Mojang's golden child, but that would be more than a little disingenuous. The folks at Hidden Path were generous enough to provide me with a key to get some hands-on experience with Windborne, but I'd like to make special mention of the fact that the game is currently part of Steam's Early Release program, which of course means that it's still unfinished and under constant development. With that in mind, I dived into Windborne's world of mystical floating islands, and I've got more than a few thoughts about the game, where it's going, and where it needs to be.
New sandbox pseudo-MMO Windborne hits Steam Early Access
It may not technically be an MMO, but we thought that Hidden Path Entertainment's "social sandbox creation" game, Windborne, might pique your interest. The game, which is now available via Steam's Early Access program, allows players to explore "an infinite number of islands, each full of wonder and surprise," on which they (and their friends) can utilize "a wide variety of building materials, furnishings, and artifacts" in order to build new civilizations and alter the world as they see fit. They can also befriend and trade with the island natives, creatures called the Jin, and the current build also boasts a "basic quest system," which gives players a "guided tour" of the game to help them gain their footing in this new world. Windborne's Steam page also outlines a number of features planned for the game's future development, such as the ability for players to help "guide the Jin to civilization" by protecting and defending them. Future updates will also add "millions of ruins filled with puzzles and treasure," dragons that can be tamed, bred, and ridden as mounts, and combat and quest systems. One last planned feature that should appeal to MMO fans is the implementation of systems to allow players to see the islands of other players surrounding their own and visit neighboring islands where they can trade, build, and generally interact with the islands' owners. If that sounds up your alley, Windborne is currently available on Steam Early Access for $29.99 US, though the game is on sale for $23.99 until February 24th. To read (and watch) more about the game or pick it up for yourself, check out Windborne's Steam page at the link below.
Windborne adventure and Starwhal fencing flip to Steam Early Access
Both Starwhal: Just the Tip and Windborne recently landed on Steam's Early Access service yesterday. Windborne, a sandbox adventure game from Counter Stike: GO and Defense Grid 2 developer Hidden Path Entertainment, is 20 percent off ($23.99) on the service until February 24. Starwhal, the narwhal fencing game set in outer space, earned $24,450 CAD ($22,294 USD) on Kickstarter in late December. The game comes from indie developer Breakfall, who will bring the game to PC, Mac, Linux, Wii U and PS4. Breakfall is hoping to carry Starwhal over to Ouya and Xbox One as well. As for Hidden Path, the developer is also partnering with Harmonix to create the recently-revealed Chroma, a free-to-play rhythmic FPS. [Image: Hidden Path Entertainment]
Harmonix announces music shooter 'Chroma,' sign up for alpha testing now
Rock Band and Dance Central developer Harmonix is going full Chris Gaines with free-to-play, first-person shooter Chroma. The multiplayer class-based arena gunner for PC has that Harmonix music twist with bullets on a beat and finding the flow in the music activating jump pads for easier arena traversal. The game is being developed in partnership with Hidden Path Entertainment (Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Defense Grid: The Awakening). Chroma's closed alpha will begin this month and sign-ups are available now at PlayChroma.com. The game will continue its development on Valve's Steam Early Access through the year and is expected to be in a publicly playable state sometime this fall. We recently had the chance to try out the alpha and the game is still finding its voice, with Harmonix representatives acknowledging this is the earliest the studio has ever shown a game. If you sign up for the alpha, you are signing up for a game very much in development where feedback will matter. The good news is that if you decide to participate, you're getting involved in one of the more interesting concepts we've seen for a shooter. Players who can find the rhythm to rampage will have a distinct advantage in this game. [Image: Harmonix]
Defense Grid 2 development under way, coming first half of 2014
Hidden Path Entertainment has announced development of Defense Grid 2 is currently underway, with a targeted launch on Steam for PC, Mac and Linux in the first half of 2014.When the Defense Grid 2 Kickstarter campaign launched, the team at Hidden Path Entertainment didn't know exactly if they'd be able to produce a sequel. The campaign had a goal of $250,000, which was met, but the team was really looking for $1 million to fund a full sequel. Hidden Path fell short of that goal but thanks to an angel investor, the sequel is now under way.The $250,000 goal of the Defense Grid 2 Kickstarter campaign was to fund Defense Grid: Containment, an expansion pack to the original Defense Grid: The Awakening. Hidden Path shipped the expansion earlier this year, which caught the eye of the unknown investor who secured funding for Defense Grid 2."You guys supported us, an investor saw your support, saw us make promises to you, saw us keep those promises to you and, after Containment shipped, they decided to partner with us and invest in Defense Grid 2 so that we have enough money to make the game," CEO Jeff Pobst says. COO Jim Garbarini added that Defense Grid 2 is "fully funded and moving forward." Kickstarter backers will receive a free copy of Defense Grid 2 when it ships, the duo confirmed.Defense Grid: The Awakening is a tower-defense game that made its debut in 2008 on the PC and was ported to the Xbox 360 the following year. In the game, players must defend military bases from waves of encroaching alien enemies through strategic placement of defense towers.
Defense Grid: Containment set for Jan. 23 launch
Defense Grid: Containment, originally expected in December, now has a solid release date of January 23. Containment is an expansion to the tower defense game Defense Grid: The Awakening. It includes 8 levels that bridge the gap between The Awakening and its upcoming sequel, and features voice work from Ming-Na Wen of ER (and Mulan) fame, as well as Alan Tudyk of being Alan Tudyk fame. Furthermore, Containment includes four user-created maps chosen from the Defense Grid community. Last year, Containment began as a Kickstarter project to help fund Defense Grid 2. While the project did surpass its $250,000 goal, it never hit the cool $1 million that developer Hidden Path sought to fully fund a sequel. Project backers will still receive Defense Grid 2 whenever it is completed. Containment will be available on Steam for $5 individually, or as part of a bundle with Defense Grid and all of its DLC for $20. %Gallery-176535%
Full Counter-Strike: Global Offensive trailer uses more ammo
In case you missed the Source Filmmaker-based teaser trailer for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, we have the extended version right here. The game is heading to PC, Xbox 360, and PS3 this coming Tuesday, August 21.
Defense Grid 2 being funded by Kickstarter
Been hoping for a sequel to the indie tower defense darling Defense Grid? Now is your chance to directly contribute to the possibility, as funding is now open for Defense Grid 2 on Kickstarter. "But wait," you say, "wasn't the original Defense Grid super popular?" According to developer Hidden Path's CEO Jeff Pobst, Defense Grid: The Awakening was definitely a "success, even beyond what we had hoped." That said, Pobst adds that a Defense Grid sequel is just "too small" for publishers to care, hence the Kickstarter.It's important to note, however, that the project's goal of $250,000 will not fully fund Defense Grid 2, but rather an expansion to the original game, featuring the first part of the Defense Grid 2 story. At $500,000 the original Defense Grid will be "remastered" in the Defense Grid 2 engine and will receive a multiplayer mode. At $750,000 will fund a level editor for Defense Grid along with Mac and Linux versions. In order to fully fund the sequel on PC, Hidden Path is looking for a cool $1 million.Of course, there are lots of rewards up for grabs, notably those offered by some rather high-level partners, Razer and AMD. Razer is offering its Naga Hex mice while AMD is putting up some Radeon HD 6770 graphics cards (not exactly AMD's high-end solution). Both companies are "helping out" on the project and will be "supporting" it throughout. Whether this is limited to technical support or includes financial support as well is unclear. We've contacted Hidden Path to learn more.As of this writing, the project has passed $130,000.Update: Hidden Path has informed Joystiq that, while AMD and Razer are providing Kickstarter rewards and technical support, they are not providing financial support to the project.
Solve the Defense Grid DLC puzzle: It's for science, she's a monster
Defense Grid's first story-expansion add-on drops for science on Dec. 7. Titled "You Monster," the DLC features Zoey from Left 4 Dead, who has to navigate various traps and -- just kidding. It features Portal's GLaDOS, and if you really want to play this piece of DLC, you'd better learn to not fall for transparent ruses like that one. GLaDOS will laugh at you. And call you fat. And probably kill you. "You Monster" will cost $4.99 on Steam or 400 Microsoft Points on Xbox 360, and contains eight new levels and 35 challenge missions, adding more than 15 hours of content where players will fight off Defense Grid aliens and complete GLaDOS' tests. Or, at least you'll try.
Reader UI of the Week: Go hotkey crazy with Vardelm
Each week, WoW Insider brings you a fresh look at reader-submitted UIs as well as Addon Spotlight, which spotlights the latest user interface addons. Have a screenshot of your own UI that you'd like to submit? Send your screenshots along with info on what mods you're using to readerui@wowinsider.com. There are some people who hotkey a few abilities into their interface, relying on the number row and some macros to take care of the brunt of the work when it comes to mashing abilities. Vardelm's UI, however, has taken the notion of "hotkey crazy" to a whole new level. Completely eschewing action bars for an invisible approach to hotkeys, Vardelm makes efficient use of his keyboard while keeping the UI comprehensive and cohesive. Suffice to say, I'm impressed with the hotkeys. There is still something frightening to me about not having action bars readily available and in plain sight. Maybe they're my safety net while I perform the delicate trapeze of raid tanking, comforting me with their visual presence. Take away the net and I could panic so hard that I'd fall harder than Dick Grayson's parents. The upside would be becoming a rich dude's ward, so I guess that isn't so bad. %Gallery-19902%
Defense Grid gets its own Resurgence pack
"Hey Ricky, what are you downloading?" "Oh, what's up, Mitch? Check it out, I found a place on the 360 Dashboard where you can get the Resurgence Pack for $4!" "Wow, that's a pretty great deal!" "Yeah, the only catch is they're only releasing one pair of maps per week for $0.99 a piece." "...But that equals eight maps. I thought they were only adding five maps to Modern Warfare 2." "Well, the other only catch is that they don't work with Modern Warfare 2, because they're actually maps for Defense Grid that just happen to -- purely by coincidence, I'm sure -- be called the Resurgence packs." "... I don't even know you any more."
X3F TV -- XBLA in Brief: Yo-Ho Kablammo, Defense Grid
Two new games find their way onto Xbox Live Arcade this week, and they are about as disparate as two games can be. First, there's Yo-Ho Kablammo (800 / $10), the second place winner of the 2007 Dream-Build-Play competition. It features pirate ships, monkeys, mines, treasure, and plenty of sea battles. On the other hand, we've got Defense Grid (800 / $10), a tower defense game featuring some nice graphics, lots of different towers and multiple enemy types. Take a look at this week's XBLA in Brief and see if either one piques your interest. Download the trial version of Yo-Ho Kablammo Download the trial version of Defense Grid: The Awakening [iTunes] Subscribe to X3F TV directly in iTunes. [Zune] Subscribe to the X3F TV directly. [RSS] Add the X3F TV feed to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically. [M4V] Download the M4V directly.
This Wednesday: Defense Grid awakens Yo-Ho KaBlammo on XBLA
This week's XBLA offerings are a pair of 800 ($10) titles, reports Major Nelson: Defense Grid: The Awakening and Yo-Ho KaBlammo. Each title is a bit heavy on the combat, with Defense Grid offering plenty of tower defense action, and Yo-Ho KaBlammo taking to the seas for some free-for-all naval combat. That sounds all well and good, but whatever happened to killing 'em with kindness? What would Gandhi say?
Defense Grid protects XBLA on Sept. 2
Developer Hidden Path has shown the way to Defense Grid: The Awakening's release: it hits XBLA on September 2. The tower defense title was well received in its PC incarnation and will cost 800 ($10) on the console.The Xbox version of the game includes the Borderlands (not be confused with the other Borderlands) mission pack, along with a few new challenge modes. The game already comes with a full campaign and what appears to be a significant amount of content for the price.%Gallery-30801%[Via Eurogamer]
Defense Grid: The Awakening coming to XBLA this summer
The personal com-pu-ter's Defense Grid: The Awakening will make its way to Xbox Live Arcade in late summer. Developer Hidden Path's tower defense game was well received after release and even made our "best of the rest" list last year. There's currently no price for the game, but hopefully it won't follow the path of the 1200 ($15) trend.If you're not looking forward on waiting -- or simply can't be bothered with "patience" -- for Defense Grid or South Park for your tower defense kick, there's always Final Fantasy Crystal Defenders.%Gallery-68723%
PAX 2008 hands-on: Defense Grid: The Awakening
Click to enlarge I have to confess this right off the bat: I don't have a high end PC gaming rig. Heck, I don't even have a PC, I use a Mac. Sure, I could load Boot Camp on this thing, but frankly my hard drive is far too crammed with music, photos, and scant room for anything gaming related. I even had to delete my free copy of the "Chess" app to make room for more. However, that is going to have to change. Early this morning I spent some quality hands-on time with Defense Grid: The Awakening. It's a tower defense game that starts out fairly easy, and then quickly gets hard. In fact, I had my ass handed to me pretty squarely when I tried out the "hard" level, and I'm going to have to grab a PC to game on so I can beat the damn thing. They have an Xbox 360 version in the works, but it will come out some time after. Check out the gallery of screenshots below, including two new exclusives, and then hit the break to find out more about the game.%Gallery-30801%
X3F TV -- XBLA in Brief: Wits and Wagers
After a one week break -- no new XBLA games last week -- XBLA in Brief is back. This week we take a look at the new trivia game Wits and Wagers. Aimed squarely at casual gamers, Wits and Wagers emphasizes simple gameplay over the more hardcore elements of games like, say, Ikaruga. No sharp reflexes needed here. Just select your answer, place your bets, and see who wins. Not bad, though it's definitely not for everyone. Check out the video and see what you think.[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.
Wits and Wagers trivializes XBLA
A new Xbox Live Arcade release is upon us, brothers and sisters. This vile temptation goes by the name of Wits and Wagers and it tempts our youth to succumb to the terrible sin of gambling. True, the abomination may be disguised as a simple trivia game, but close inspection reveals that the only way to win is to bet on the winning answer. Truly it is an evil game, and one that you should spurn as you would spurn a rabid dog.But seriously, folks, Wits and Wagers is a trivia game and it's available now for 800 Microsoft points. Oh, and Scene-It owners take note: it features support for the Big Button controller. It also make rather ... interesting use of the Vision camera. Go grab the trial version and see what you think.%Gallery-18616%
XBLA bets on a Wits and Wagers release this week
Coming off a a week long Xbox Live Arcade drought, Microsoft just announced that the board game based Wits and Wagers will be releasing to the XBLA this Wednesday, May 7th. W00t!For 800 Microsoft points, players will be treated to a trivia game unlike any other, where players bet on who they believe knows the correct answer. With over 700 questions, a quirky presentation, up to six players online, local play and big button controller support, Wits and Wagers may fill that social trivia void you feel inside.%Gallery-18616%
You can bet that Wits and Wagers is XBLA bound
Again, our trusty friend the ESRB has come to the rescue in fulling our insatiable appetite for upcoming (and totally unannounced) XBLA games with their latest listing for Wits and Wagers.Wits and Wagers will be a title developed by the crew over at Hidden Path Entertainment and solely for the Xbox 360. In general, Wits and Wagers is a board game where players answer trivia and place bets on which guess is closest to the actual answer. Simple enough. Though, we're curious to see how well Hidden Path can pull off a game like Wits and Wagers seeing that their only experience on the 360 is an XNA demo and creating a trivia game isn't the easiest genre to make entertaining. It doesn't really matter though. We're just proud that we discovered another upcoming XBLA game long before its announcement. We so cool!
