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Vampire Smile coming to PC officially from Microsoft and Ska Studios
Ska Studios' XBLA bloodbath The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile is coming to PC with help from Microsoft, creator James Silva announced on his dev (and cat) blog. Vampire Smile is currently on PC – but it's via an unofficial crack that made headlines this morning, partially because the hacker labeled his version a "restoration of justice." Silva says he and the other half of Ska Studios, Michelle Juett Silva, approached Microsoft last week about developing an extended, PC version of Vampire Smile, far before the unofficial version was an issue. "Porting Vampire Smile to PC as an enhanced Director's Cut has been something I've been wanting to do since launch (I was calling it Georgelucasing until Michelle made me stop)," James writes. "Nothing's set in stone, but we got the go ahead to make a pre-announcement: We'll be working with Microsoft to bring our stuff to PC." Ska Studios can't officially condone the cracked PC version of Vampire Smile, but James doesn't hold the creator in complete disregard: "I really am honestly flattered that he took the time and effort to reverse engineer Vampire Smile for PC. I heart your enthusiasm, Barabus! (Just stop calling it justice, please!)" And since Ska can't stop making news today, it went all out: Charlie Murder, its next brawler coming to XBLA, is slated for a launch this summer. We think it's a ton of chaotic fun – check out the launch trailer below.
Fan launches unofficial PC port of Vampire Smile, says it's not piracy
Russian developer Barabus really wanted to see Ska Studios' Xbox 360-exclusive game, The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile, on PC – so Barabus created a cracked version and uploaded it to the web. Barabus didn't contact Ska Studios and didn't think creator James Silva would lose any money from the unofficial PC port. On a game development forum, Barabus cited the following reasons the port was ethical (in English from Google Translate): "The view was expressed that, with respect to the authors is not very nice to publish the game on the PC. I have to argue that the part of the authors are not very nice to publish the game exclusively for the Xbox 360, making it impossible for PC gamers to play in such a great game," Barabus writes. "Piracy – yes, that is bad. On the other hand, we do not steal the game for the Xbox 360, we release it for the PC port. Given that developers ignore the PC platform, about any loss of profit for them is not out of the question. After all, if they wanted to earn money, then the game would be issued on all available platforms. If the game came out on PC officially, then this thread would not exist." Of course many players own both PCs and Xbox 360s, and an unofficial PC port could potentially lure away paying console customers and impact Ska Studios' profits. And Silva expressed interest in creating a PC version of Vampire Smile after finishing his next game, Charlie Murder. Silva responded to Barabus' port to Indie Statik. "I guess you could say my reaction is mixed," Silva said. "I'm flattered that there's this much interest in Vampire Smile on PC. I'm not mad about the crack itself; in fact, I'm actually pretty impressed. But I'm bewildered by the cracker's attempt to justify the morality of it. He assumes a lot about why Vampire Smile's not on PC yet, and he could have cleared up a lot of those assumptions by just emailing me. I get that piracy is a service problem, but that's a consequence, not a justification." Barabus added the following justification in the comments of that post: "The PC version has a lot of limitations. Cooperative gameplay is unavailable, network gameplay is unavailable, achievments is unavailable ... "Original Xbox 360 version for pirates is more attractive. I gave only the opportunity to play for those people who have no Xbox 360. This is not piracy. This is restoration of justice."
James Silva ready to make a third Dishwasher game for Microsoft
The Dishwasher creator and Ska Studios head James Silva spoke at GDC last week, and concluded his talk with the slide seen above. Fans want a third Dishwasher game, Microsoft wouldn't mind publishing one, and he wants to do one, said Silva, so why shouldn't there be a trilogy of Dishwasher titles out there? Don't look at us, bud -- you're the game designer. Silva is, of course, currently working on the side-scrolling, punk-flavored beat-em-up Charlie Murder for Xbox Live Indie Games Arcade. After that adventure is all wrapped up, it may be time to wash those dishes yet again.
The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile review: Fangs a lot
It's a bloodbath, all right. The young girl swings and stabs, ripping her blade through flesh, metal and bone, eviscerating foe after foe until the room is covered in a thick, rich coat of red. Your eye can barely track her movements as she flits from corner to corner, vanishing in a puff of crimson smoke only to reappear, strike, and then vanish again. Her enemies give fruitless pursuit, haplessly swinging and shooting, their blades and bullets finding only air. Soldiers, cyborgs, nefarious government agents, zombie marines; she liquifies them all. A last, lonely ninja hobbles towards her, his katana waving impotently. She lets out a roar and leaps on him, rending his flesh with her bare hands. She collapses, bathed in their blood, and the nightmares wash over her again. %Gallery-117545%
The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile dev diary channels the MTV spirit of old
The guys at Ska Studios must be big Kurt Loder fans (we're totally Team Serena Altschul!), because this dev diary for The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile is straight outta the '90s. The video takes us on a tour of founder James Silva's pad (just like MTV Cribs!), which is great for all of you stalker types out there -- and even greater for those of you curious to see how an indie studio is livin'. The video also introduces the newest member of Ska Studios, "art unicorn" Michelle. Hey, aren't unicorns supposed to have horns on their heads? False advertising, lady!
Xbox Live April schedule: Bad Company 2 DLC, Comic Jumper discounts
Microsoft has revealed some of the content and deals coming to the Xbox Live Marketplace in early April, which include quite a few discounts. It kicks off this week with the launch of DLC for Mass Effect 2 and You Don't Know Jack, as well as some discounts on Comic Jumper, Deadliest Warrior and the "Dead Money" DLC for Fallout: New Vegas. Hit the jump for the full list.
The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile bites into XBLA on April 6 for $10
James Silva has finally dated his sequel to The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai and it's coming just in time for Easter. On April 6, The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile will debut on Xbox Live Arcade for 800 MS Points ($10), complete with 3D functionality. Sorry, dish soap not included. PAX East attendees will be the first to sample the final build of the game, which Ska Studios will have available at its booth. A few of the luckier attendees will even be able to snag some preliminary download codes. %Gallery-86333%
The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile (in 3D) preview: The price of purty
Whenever we hear about a game running in 3D, we're always filled with questions about performance. Rendering everything twice isn't an easy prospect, especially for something as fast and frenetic as The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile. %Gallery-117545%
The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile gets 3D support [update: new trailer and screens]
Microsoft's February Showcase is underway in San Francisco, and with it comes news that upcoming XBLA action title The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile is getting the 3D treatment. MS hasn't released details on exactly how the tech will be implemented, though it's worth noting that the game itself uses 2D sprites. We've got boots on the ground at the showcase, so hopefully we'll get a chance to see it first hand. Update: Find new screens in the gallery below and a trailer after the break. %Gallery-117545%
The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile preview: hobbyist graduated
The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai was a smash hit on Xbox Live Arcade and rightfully so. But now there's a sequel coming next year and, with it, higher hopes. The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile stars a new protagonist, adds a bevvy of new challenges and, perhaps most importantly, runs on a brand-new engine.%Gallery-86333%
XBL Deal of the Week: The Dishwasher Dead Samurai for $5
As Xbox Live Deals of the Week go, this week's is pretty darn good. This week only, Xbox Live Gold members can enjoy the violent, bloody fun of The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai for only five bucks -- fully half off the title's standard price of $10. Not a bad deal for one of the better action games on XBLA, and the perfect excuse to get acquainted with the titular character before the (still undated) release of the game's sequel, The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile. Remember, you'll have to be signed into Xbox Live Gold to see the discount. Xbox.com: Add The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai to your Xbox 360 download queue ($5)
Hands-on: The Dishwasher Vampire Smile (XBLA)
Like a lot of people, I purchased The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai when it launched during Microsoft's 'Days of Arcade' promotion in April 2009. But for some reason I didn't play the game as much as I thought I would. Perhaps it was its punishing difficulty or the swarm of releases that chewed through my time but once the game was safely in my digital collection, I abandoned it. After getting time to play two levels of the game's sequel at the Ska Studios booth at PAX East 2010, I'm looking forward to wiping the virtual dust off the original and play it as I patiently wait for The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile. %Gallery-86333%
The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile announced for XBLA; watch the trailer now
The Fervor Shine countdown has ended, and, as surmised, Ska Studios has announced a sequel to The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai. Entitled The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile, the game features the return of everyone's favorite table-busing warrior. Ska released a trailer and screens for the title, confirming the accuracy of the images that were leaked last year -- including the giant scissors. Today's announcement reveals additional weapons, including a humongous syringe called the Painkiller and the Violence Hammer, "whose business end consists of a section of girder wrapped in barbed wire and random hardware." Vampire Smile is running on a new engine and contains a single-player campaign, a co-op campaign, 50 challenge levels, and an endless challenge mode. The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile will be available "when it's done." If you can't wait that long, it will also be playable at the PAX East convention, along with Ska's upcoming Xbox Live Indie Game, Charlie Murder. %Gallery-86333%
