Today EA announced that Black Box’s PC exclusive free-to-play MMO racer Need for Speed World will launch sometime this summer.

According to the press release: “Need for Speed World brings together best in class action racing with an unparalleled social experience. For the first time in a racing game, players will be able to compete against any one of their friends, family or pick from thousands of top ranked players to challenge in intense online battles and police pursuits across 150 miles of sprawling open world. Need for Speed World takes the well known and popular cities from Need for Speed Most Wanted and Need for Speed Carbon to create the biggest, most exciting race world ever released in the Need for Speed universe.”

Producer John Doyle stated, “We have expanded Need for Speed’s classic adrenaline fueled racing with an all-new power up system and deep RPG style progression to create a truly massive, socially-connected white-knuckle Need for Speed experience.”

For those of you who are interested, EA has just kicked off the English closed beta. In order to get your hands on it, head over to world.needforspeed.com and submit an application. As with all closed betas there are a limited number of spots, so don’t be surprised if you don’t get in.

Personally, I’m curious to see how Black Box handles an MMO racing game. Other developers have tried this genre before (Motor City Online, Project Torque) but they never really were that successful. I think that as long as there is a good RPG element to keep gamers hooked (aka leveling system that provides distinct advantages) Need for Speed World will be able to hold its own.

What do you guys think? Is the concept of an MMO racer dead before it hits the tracks, or is there some promise to this premise?

Source: Shacknews.com

Final Fantasy, as a series and cultural phenomenon, has evolved far beyond its roots, growing and molding into something of an institution. The name alone invokes a thousand emotions, admirations, complaints and disturbing amounts of fan fiction and cosplay. Arguably, each and every game in the series has, in one way or another, altered the dimensions and scope of what a JRPG can accomplish and how bold, epic and apocalyptic stories can be told.

After 3 and a half long years, Final Fantasy XIII has finally arrived on the shores of the West, promising to bolster the increasingly irrelevant and dry genre that was itself birthed over 2 decades ago. Has the Yoshinori Kitase lead team succeeded in refreshing the stale stable of innovation that has been sorely lacking within this console generation, or is Final Fantasy destined to become its namesake?

Square Enix have never been afraid to defy the laws of a genre. Almost every single one of their titles features almost completely different methods of gameplay, from battle systems to character and plot progression, all of them becoming one-off experiments in the art of perfecting the “experience”. While some of these experiments work so well that they become standards, others find themselves pariahs within the development community.

Final Fantasy XIII finds itself in the precarious position of the Frankenstein of game development past. While it’s predecessor, XII, made drastic (some might say disastrous) attempts to completely overhaul the traditional battle and exploratory systems, XIII finds itself on an equally ambitious yet conciliatory path toward merging new and old players back into the series.

This is important, since XII had a notoriously difficult and complex battle system (Gambit), which tended to entrench hardcore players and prohibited new players from getting into the series. In XIII, many of the changes to the original ATB (Active Time Battle) system involve more active strategy, while at the same time encompassing elements of the Gambit system, which enables the player to direct the battle for their allies rather then directly controlling their actions.

This is done via the well known “job system” of previous titles. In XIII, characters are assigned a number of possible roles, such as a Commander (focusing on chaining together melee attacks), Ravager (damage focused magic user) or Medic (white magic healer). Encompassing a much improved version of the “license grid” from X, the “Crystarium”allows each character to be customised and focused to a particular job.

At the end of each battle, all characters, whether they were in your party or not, recieve Crystarium points. These points are used to acquire new skills, spells and stat improvements as you follow the path along your chosen job. It’s a great system; while job selection is limited initially, more variety is slowly available as the game unfolds itself, thus forcing you to get used to every combination and the appropriate synergy required, during battle, of the various roles.

Which leads us to the other game changing and strategically significant portion of the battle system, the Paradigm. Paradigms, essentially, are preset modes of 3 job types that can be changed within your current party at any time during battle. In most battles that occur after the first 8 hours or so, you’ll find yourself experimenting with different types depending on the weakness of your enemy. Moreover, as direct control over your party no longer exists, it’s imperative that a vigilant eye is kept on the health of weaker players, thus changing paradigms to suit the situation (one member takes damage while another heals the entire party).

The combat is what, ultimately, will decide where many will sit when it comes to enjoyment of the game. Personally, the hybrid construct removes the problems associated with random battles, (longevity, micromanagement and frequency) while allowing you to focus on the long-term objectives of the battle; as in, what “type of attack” works, rather than “what spell or spell category“. No longer are you stuck in a situation where you have to “healers” in your party; now everyone has an alternative.

Which is good, since you’ll be fighting, in true Final Fantasy style, a hell of a lot. Traversing the world of Cocoon and beyond is simple, making it almost impossible to get lost or distracted, and keeping you completely focused on the story at hand. That’s right folks, Square liked the feeling of directorial power that it held over the player in FFX, thus the never-ending corridor has made it’s second appearance, albeit with a bit of a twist.

You’re given a small minimap, along with a wider map available at the push of a button, which lays out your path along with any possible enemies, save points and cut-scene carryovers. Within this path, you fight, you save, you shop and yes, you get to play mini-games. The illusion has finally been pulled out from under us, dear players. The humble town, along with its inn, empty houses and weapon stores, has been put out to pasture.

Where towns were already nothing more then blips on the point-to-point system of old, they did provide somewhat of a break from the intense amount of lore that was sliced thick and served on a bed of cinema. That said, removing the humble tavern from the formula provides a welcome sense of continuity to the story and forces the designers to stay on message. Where it was almost impossible to remember where you had been and what you had done in FFVII after you came back from a break, there is definitely no such problem in XIII.

For those who are determined to get their fill of an open world, your patience will be rewarded. Once our heroes reach the world of Pulse, the linearity tends to be relaxed and players can indulge in side quests, experience grinding, and even a couple of minigames. I found this compromise to be somewhat trivial, since re-adding the illusion of an open world doesn’t help to convince players that the decision to change the status-quo was an unequivocal one.

For the sake of those who like their storylines untainted and pure, I’ll keep it brief. FFXIII takes a much more serious and darker tone then more recent episodes in the series, focusing on topics involving exclusion, fear, trust, loyalty and resistance. Square has heard the cries of the masses; thus, the adventure that revolves around the central character, bad-arse albeit slightly emo Lightening, is remarkably deep. It’s impossible to ignore the ties to series favourites  VI and VII, which both featured more mature themes.

But the problems begin when the characters begin to talk, and it’s almost instantly obvious that some lines just don’t translate well from Japanese. While many of the characters are able to communicate without the awkward one-liners and corny catch phrases that JRPG’s seem to find so enduring, there are still far too many examples of derivative and almost completely useless dialogue. Actions speak louder then words; thus, sometimes silence can be enduring rather than an opportunity for comic relief.

Dialogue aside, the plot expands from a relatively slow beginning and opens up (almost literally from a gameplay perspective). After the first ten hours or so, the narrative begins to firm and you understand what your mission ultimately is. The game peaks, and stays that way until the conclusion, which is satisfying in a way that only Final Fantasy can be. It’s not the revolutionary tale of sacrifice and loyalty that we had been eagerly awaiting, but it’s a great ride all the same.

What does, however, live up to almost every expectation are the graphics and sound. It’s no mean feat to make cutscenes and real-time effects look completely seamless, but it hasn’t been since FFVII blew us all away with it’s cutscenes that I’ve seen a game look this good. Everything, from the incredibly well animated and choreographed  action scenes, to the intense, constant 60fps battle scenes in glorious HD look crisp, sharp and beautiful.

There has been some discussion of the quality differences between the PS3 and the Xbox360 editions, and there are. A Digital Foundry review of both found that while the PS3 version is displayed in beautiful 720p, the Xbox 360 version, due to storage issues, is stuck at a very last-gen 576p. Both, in any case, are upscaled to 1080, but if you have both systems and are looking for a slight edge, this (along with disc swapping) would be it. FFXIII was designed for the PS3 and it shows.

Final Fantasy XIII has the ability, like every one of its predecessors, to polarise casual and hardcore fans alike. It makes drastic and sweeping changes to what many would consider essential genre staples, and its slow, tutorial heavy beginning threatens to scare away twitchy gamers that are used to quick and easy repatriation. There are no levels to gain, no towns to explore, no brick and mortar shops to peruse.

But the dilution and disillusionment that has plagued the genre as of late required drastic action, and the developers here showed they had the balls to do just that. Changes aside, there is no doubt that there is a gorgeous, thrilling, and well designed game here, one deserving of more kudos then many have been willing to provide. XIII has blown new life and energy into a dying genre, along with creating another world and cast that we can lose ourselves in, once again.

The reviewer played the Playstation 3 version for the purposes of this review, although has also briefly played the Xbox 360 version as well. The publisher declined to provide a PAL copy for review, thus it was purchased.

[You can check out previous installments of this series at Overdoing It: Sequelmania and Overdoing It: Boobies]

I think we can all agree that the vast majority of people that call themselves “gamers” would doubtless own a PS3, Xbox 360, or both. With the introduction of these consoles came a brand new feature that has undoubtedly become something of a viral sensation: trophies and achievements.

Whether it’s pumping hundreds of hours into your 360 in order to reach that coveted 100,000 GamerScore, or searching for the last hidden item that will grant you yet another Platinum trophy, games are now giving players the opportunity to showcase their (forgive me) prowess in the gaming arena.

So when did we decide that it was okay for gaming to become a job?

I don’t mean to exaggerate things here, but it seems to me that an incredible number of my 360 and PS3 friends waste countless hours in the hope that their GS or trophy collection will increase. Hours that could be spent blazing through that hefty backlog of titles, or experiencing an underrated indie game.

And for what? To boast in front of your fellow 12-hour-a-day game junkies? To show off an imaginary number or list of trophies that mean absolutely nothing in the outside world?

Do these achievements earn you money? No. Is there any reward for attaining a certain number of points or trophies? No.

Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy that little sound that acknowledges a new unlocked achievement as much as the next guy. I’m not ashamed of my meagre 10,000 GamerScore or few dozen trophies, either. On the contrary, I was more than a little pleased with my most recent 360 achievement; last week, FIFA 10 informed me that I had spent 50 hours on the game and that I would be rewarded with 70 virgins 50 GS.

My point isn’t that these achievements are somehow evil. Rather, it’s the fact that they play on the obsessive nature of some gamers. Rock Band 2, for example, has trophies that range from the simple to the downright torturous. One such ridiculous achievement is The Bladder of Steel Award; this bastard of a trophy requires you to complete the Endless Setlist 2 without stopping or failing. While you can attempt it on any difficulty, it certainly isn’t easy; just think about what no pausing means for an 84-song marathon. And you’ll only receive a Gold trophy for all your bladder-bursting exploits. Gold. Are you fucking kidding me?

Handheld consoles perform just fine without such “features” to appease their customers. Granted, the PSP initially had plans for a trophy system, but its ultimate axing due to piracy concerns hasn’t harmed it from a sales point of view. Calls for DS achievements have fallen on deaf ears, and I for one am glad of it. When I’m working my way through Phantom Hourglass or getting frustrated in Professor Layton, I’m never thinking to myself, “Oh golly gosh, I hope I get an achievement after I finish this puzzle.” I’m not a dog that needs to be rewarded every time I perform a trick.

The Nintendo Wii succeeds just fine without any sort of achievements; their fanboys seem to be satisfied with the size of their e-penis already. When I played through A Boy and His Blob, I was simply content with defeating the bosses; there was no disappointment in the knowledge that my online buddies wouldn’t be able to see the compensation for my victories. I never felt a pang of regret that the game hadn’t been released on an achievement-friendly console.

You don’t have to look too far back to remember a time without trophies or rewards; the PS2 and Xbox played out just fine without them. Are we really just sycophants eager to get a hard-on every time Microsoft or Sony wave a treat in front of our noses?

We gain nothing from these pointless numbers and pixelated prizes. Gamers spend countless hours every day attempting to build up their online statuses, grinding away the day in a fit of fruitless dedication. Who’s to say that these achievements and trophies won’t become completely redundant when the next wave of consoles arrives? What purpose will they serve then? Will the eBay guy you sell your 360 to have an urge to call you up and congratulate you on your incredible GamerScore? Probably not; and if he does, you should probably hang up the phone.

It sounds pretty rich coming from anyone – especially from some bloke that enjoys writing about video games in his spare time – but I believe that games are made to entertain. If you get your kicks from unlocking hilarious (or sick, depending on your care factor) rewards, then more power to you. But when we start forcing ourselves to earn every single achievement just because a developer tells us to, isn’t the game really playing us?

Today Bethesda Softworks announced that it has teamed up with developer inXile Entertainment to publish a new “third-person co-op fantasy action game” for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC. Dubbed Hunted: The Demon’s Forge, the new game promises to be a throw-back to the dungeon crawler days of yore combined “with the intensity and action of a modern-day shooter.”

Players will be able to pick one of two characters: a sword-wielding warrior named Caddoc and a bow specialist Elara. While either of these characters are capable on their own, inXile has designed the game so that the two work best together, hence the co-op feature.

Players will be able to modify their characters via weapon upgrades and leveling up. Each character has their own unique skill tree, allowing the player more customization option.

For those of you who don’t know, inXile was founded in 2002 by Brian Fargo, of Interplay fame. Fargo has worked on titles including: Fallout, The Bard’s Tale, and Baldur’s Gate, so he knows his way around an RPG.

Personally I’m very excited for this game. Brian Fargo is one of my favorite people in the games industry and I trust him to delivered a quality product. Also, Hunted seems like a game that is easy to pick up and put down, meaning that my roommate and I will be able to sneak in a few minutes whenever out schedules line up.  Unfortunately Bethesda has yet to announce a release date.

What do you guys think? Will Hunted be the new fantasy Gears of War, or will it be a crappy arcady Diablo?

Source: Gamasurta.com

Those who have been hotly anticipating the upcoming Sony-exclusive racer ModNation Racers will be relieved to know that a release date of May 25th has finally been announced. A European date has yet to be confirmed, but SCEE have stated they are aiming to release it the same week as North America. If this is the case, we can presume it will be available May 25th if Europe’s traditional Friday release dates are anything to go by.

ModNation Racer’s innovative track creation and share facilities have gained a fair amount of publicity since its debut at E3 last summer, so Sony must be feeling confident about this one. Hit the jump for a lowdown of some pre-order exclusives that are to be bundled with the game.

Pre-order incentives:

• Pre-order from GameStop and score Kratos and his Kart of Chaos
• Pre-order from Amazon and race as Ratchet or Clank
• Pre-order from Best Buy and score Nathan Drake and his Jungle Jeep

North American box art:

European box art:

Source: PlayStation Blog

I’m not sure I can say the transition from anime to games has generally been met with staggering success in the past, so have Sega struck gold with their tactical RPG on the DS?

Well, no.

I guess I should elaborate at least a little on that sentiment. The fact that the game carves out a new story, instead of just rehashing pieces of the original series is certainly a point in its favour, and a point that more developers should take into consideration when transitioning a game from a long-running series such as Bleach. Not only that, but this story is written by Tite Kubo, a name fans will recognise as the creator of Bleach, in which you play one of a set of twins created especially for this game.

However, it’s unfortunate that that remains the most positive thing I can say about the game. While dropping the fighting format of the previous titles shows a willingness to broaden the series, it also pits the game against some heavy hitters of the genre, such as Fire Emblem or Disgaea – and when compared to those titles, it doesn’t fare too well.

The format is essentially the same, placing you on an isometric grid with control over your various pawns like an adrenaline-fuelled game of chess. It’s the little things that combine to letting it down, from a lack of movement of the camera that hinders the view and makes the top screen’s map an essential addition rather than a pleasant addition, to the over indulgence of text conversations.

I like a good story, and I appreciate when a game wants me to become involved, immersed and genuinely care about the characters, but when I spend a hefty amount of the game tapping A to funnel my way through yet another conversation, I’m going to lose interest eventually. Perhaps this decision was made to veer off the preconceived notion of “another fighting game” that the series may have felt it was plagued with, but it was a step too far. I lost track of the amount of times I went to another character’s house for dinner.

It’s a shame these scenes left a sour taste, as the involvement with the existing Bleach universe is tremendous. You find Urahara longing to open his own shop and free himself from the shackles of the Soul Society, Gin Ichimaru at a time before he reeks of pure evil, and Rangiku Matsumoto at a time when any mention of cleavage is about twelve steps past inappropriate.

Outside of the main plot, you engage in “free time”, which is the game’s way of letting you flesh out the story by allowing you to interact with the characters you want to. The choice in the order you watch these can also affect your game, as each day is placed on a path and each scene takes up a certain amount of action points; use too many and you might overshoot a bonus, too few and you might end your free time early.

If you are a die-hard Bleach fan, this game has an entertainment factor that will draw you in as you immerse yourself in the world of the anime (or the manga, however you enjoy your poison). If you aren’t one of those people, then there isn’t a lot of potential here and your Strategy RPG fix would be better served in Disgaea, Final Fantasy: Tactics or Fire Emblem.

If you are one of the millions of people who are still playing Modern Warfare 2, even though its multiplayer is broken beyond repair, then this is your lucky day.  Details and pricing for the game’s first downloadable map pack have been released, and it appears that killing has a steep price tag attached to it.

For the completely absurd price of $15 (1200 MS Points), you’ll be able to slaughter your enemies in one of five new maps, two of which are actually “slightly reworked” maps from the original Modern Warfare.  Xbox 360 owners will get first dibs at this DLC when it launches on March 30th, followed by the PS3 and PC versions which will be available at some undisclosed date in April.

For more information about these new maps, hit the jump.

New Maps:

• “Bailout” – A multi-level apartment complex.
• “Storm” – An open industrial park littered with heavy machinery.
• “Salvage” – A snowy junkyard fortified by stacked debris and crushed cars.

“Reworked” Modern Warfare Maps:

• “Crash” – A war torn urban environment.
• “Overgrown” – Which features a massive dry creek bed.

While I might have a problem with the $15 price tag of this DLC, I completely understand that Infinity Ward and Activision can charge it and people will pay.  After all, we are talking about a game that’s sold more than 25 million copies, many of which are still playing the multiplayer.  When a game is that popular, you can charge whatever you want and people will flock to it.

I personally don’t plan on picking it up, but I also haven’t played the game since December.  How do the rest of your feel about this DLC.  Are you excited about the new maps?  Is Activision charging too much, or is Modern Warfare 2 so good it warrants the steep price?

Source: Destructoid

Welcome to the first Weekly Recap of daylight savings time. Thankfully, everything except my microwave auto-set themselves for the time change; and, honestly, I’m fine with having to do the microwave myself… if it was hooked up to the WiFi it might share how awful my diet is with anyone who cared to check. Then I’d have to defend my diet of burritos, ramen, and EasyMac to my mother… who would be horrified at the prospect of my malnutrition.

And speaking of malnutrition, the past week has been pretty slow here at GL due to the launch of Square Enix’s latest life destroying game, Final Fantasy 13. This week’s LimitCast is about it, most of the staff are playing it, and for some reason, there is even someone (*cough*JAMIE*cough*) that got it for the Xbox 360. I guess he didn’t hear that his inferior version of the game is why the PS3 version didn’t live up to it’s full potential. Or maybe he did, and just likes making horrible decisions.

Either way, Jamie should be thoroughly scolded for such a senseless waste of money. But that can wait until after the recap, can’t it?

Talk of the new Medal of Honor game has been all over the web. Jake brings it to the user-blogs with a reflection on recent interviews and his past experiences with the games.

Swallow’s suggestions for a comfortable post-apocalyptia are fantastic. Go contribute to the ongoing discussion so we can all be prepared for when the world goes to hell.

If you were interested in Star Ocean: The Last Hope International, here’s a fantastic writeup about it. And since it’s on bluray/PS3, it’s obviously the best version available. So go sell that piece of shit 360 copy you have laying around, and get the real version, asap.

Jake thinks Final Fantasy 13 Rules. I’m sure several of you instantly hate him for that statement… but read the blog to find out why before just flaming his comment section.

Curtis misses Baywatch. I’m pretty sure that “revelation” doesn’t surprise anyone.

In case you were wondering how to get fired from Activision, Michael posted a handy chart.

Swallow thinks Pets are Good in the real world and in gaming. If it weren’t so much work I’d probably have a pet… as it is, I just end up missing the family dogs. As for in games, I generally don’t care for them. Too much hassle without any soft warmness.

Nnofuneral made up for not posting last week by writing an epic piece on Casual Raiding.

If you’ve been looking at Supreme Commander 2 with lusty eyes, you should check out Carl’s impressions of the game. But, beware: it may end up in your wallet hating you.

I was gonna write something clever about Shoot 1UP, but the last picture Dylan chose distracted me.

A colorful, thumbstick shooter on the XBLI service!? That’s never happened before. But, amidst the clutter of that genre, Square Off is apparently worth a try. Or so says, Ashley.

I know what you’re thinking, “wait… didn’t they review Soul already?” And the answer is yes, but it was on the XBLI and this one is on the iPhone. It’s also by a different person, so there! I bet that shut you up, didn’t it!?

In an attempt to purge MAG from his system, Martin has clung fast to Battlefield: Bad Company 2. I’d make some snarky comment about the game, but I’m really addicted to it. So, the only thing I’ll say is that the rest of GL has it for the 360. If you have it on PS3, play with Martin; I’m sure he’s looking for others who made the same bad decision he did.

I honestly feel bad for Kevin this week… he reviewed Blood Bowl and it looks to be about as awful as the title makes it sound. Then again, I’m not a fan of blood, bowls, or football; maybe Kevin is.

Everyone knows that Dante’s Inferno ripped off God of War pretty heavily, but did you know the PSP version ripped off Chains of Olympus!? If not, you do now. And if you played CoO, you’ll know that is a very good thing. The PSP could really use more games like that.

Ever wanted to use those plastic guitars for something other than a music game? Well, Fret Nice may either make those dreams come true or shatter them completely, leaving you cold, alone, depressed, and listening to The Cure over and over again. At least it looks pretty, though… right?

If you’re one of the few people still frothing at the mouth for zombie games, Age of Zombies might help you stop grossing the rest of us out. I mean, seriously… what the hell is mouth froth anyway? Is it like having zomibe-rabies?

Tony found Mega Man 10 to be an unnecessary but fun outing for the series. I don’t know what a necessary game would look like, but I think I need to find and play it now.

With the Oscars and GDC both behind us now, Curtis’s piece on Oscar Nominated Films vs Blockbuster Video Games was very fitting for the past week. Unfortunately, I’ve only seen one of the movies and played one of the games, so I can’t really say much else. Just go read it and pretend I said something inflammatory about Heavy Rain sucking goat balls compared to Inglorious Basterds.

Ashley wrote up a fantastic piece about the five grand prize contestants and their Road to IGF 2010. Not only is there a video for each game, but she does a quick write-up about each and even gave her prediction of who would win (which turned out to be accurate). If you didn’t read it, you should. And if you watched the IGF live-stream, you should check it out to get a bit more info about the games.

Getting back into their normal schedule/groove, Limitcast Episode 34 – The Empire Strikes Back focused mainly on the recent Activision vs Infinity Ward legal rodeo. Later in the show they moved into Bad Company 2, MAG, Chase’s misplaced hope that cutting a game’s single player would mean they’d spend more time/money on the multiplayer, and what the guys have been playing recently.

And, as they’ve been doing lately, they recorded the show live. If you weren’t there, you’re a huge loser. For this week at least. Try again next Sunday.

That’s about it for the week. On a closing note… I like to imagine the following video is what got Jamie so excited for FF13 on the 360 and convinced him it was the right console to get it for.

JOHN CENA!!!!

Well folks, the video game landscape has changed significantly since our last chat. Final Fantasy XIII’s release has shaken us here at Gamer Limit, and we have been debating its place in Final Fantasy history with a little bloodshed as possible (mind the puddles).

Josh, Chase, Shawn, and Paul can’t wait for you to join us live at 7pm EST tonight as we debate this hot topic, and more on the Limitcast!

A couple of other things have been happening around the industry as well. The Playstation Move and Onlive were both unveiled at GDC this week, and their presence is sparking a lot of conversation. Also, a giant hamster ball made an appearance too. Do we really need all of this?

We will also be talking about the upcoming release of God of War III. We know Shawn’s machismo can’t wait to press X over and over, What about you guys?

These topics will give us tons to talk about so make sure you tune into the live show at 7pm EST tonight, leave your comments below, and catch us later when we post its recording on Tuesday, the 17th!

Subscribe to the Limitcast

I have a distinct memory of playing Raiden II when I was younger, and loving the hell out of it.  There’s something immediately fun and nostalgic about playing a classic top down shmup.  This is why that memory of Raiden II stays with me to this very day, and also what led to my interest in Shoot 1UP.

An indie title from developer Mommys Best Games, Shoot 1UP is very much in the vain of the Raiden series, in that it’s full of the top-down goodness that has kept this genre prominent (and more importantly, fun) for so many years.  However, the game adds in a unique, and dare I say brilliant, mechanic that really differentiates it from the multitude of other similarly designed titles.

This mechanic revolves around the idea that, in place of building up a reserve store of lives to fall back on should you fall in combat, the game instead grants you any 1UPs you earn as active ships to aid your cause.  In other words, for every new life you get, a new ship appears on your screen immediately.  Should you be successful enough, you can take up a nice chunk (30 ships worth) of the screen with your squadron.  Not to mention, the game supports Co-Op play, upping the total ship count to 60 on screen at once, chugging away at your enemies.  And the great design doesn’t stop there.

Along with the ability to amass an army of fighters, the game also adds a layer of complex strategical maneuvering.  Basically, you have the option to spread your ships out across the map, or pull them all in for a single line of attack.  There is positive and negative strategic value for both of these options.  When spread out, your ships cover more area with their fire, and eliminate more enemies.  You also gain the ability to launch a beam of energy at your foes, great for tackling bosses.  However, the downside is that dodging incoming ships and fire is much more difficult when in a wider formation.  Should you choose to keep your squad close together, you will lose the ability to use the beam attack, but will ensure the survival of more units.

Graphically, the game exudes classic charm.  In the same way that Mega Man 9’s retro visuals can still look pretty damn good, so too do Shoot 1UP’s.  The level design in particular is also surprisingly interesting, albeit a little crowded with stuff to look at.  The basic enemy ship designs are generally pretty solid, if not too varied or detailed.  However, when it comes to boss designs, this game is awesome.  Every single boss battle is interesting and fun to look at – which is pretty rare in shooters these days.  However, since the firepower upgrades are nearly non-existent, it’s tough not to grow tired of the basic fire animations.

Another interesting design choice is the ability to choose your path at certain times in the game.  Mostly, this consists of simple commands such as “Continue Ahead” or “Go Back”, which plays out exactly as you’d expect.  At other intervals, you’ll receive the option to free roam.  While that concept is a bit deceiving (you can’t exactly fly wherever you want), you do switch to a diagonal-focused combat scenario.  It’s a refreshing break from the typical straightforward path of top down shooters, and it fits well.

I think Shoot 1UP is a fine addition to the genre, something that we don’t see nearly enough of nowadays.  Sure, it has a paper thin story (something about flagella and almost naked women decorating a level, I’m pretty sure), but for this genre, that neither comes as a surprise, nor particularly as a fault.

Games like this are meant to be played, enjoyed, and played again.  The only real problem I have with Shoot 1UP is how quickly it’s over.  In total, there are only six levels.  But for something this cheap ($1!), you’re definitely getting your moneys worth and more.  I hope to see this expanded on in the future.

Gamer Limit gives Shoot 1UP an 8.5/10

One of the things that’s eternally frustrating about the Xbox LIVE Indie marketplace is the fact that it’s cluttered with terrible thumbstick shooters. They bring nothing new to the genre and most are plagued by worn out gameplay and terrible music that makes your ears bleed. Fortunately, Gnomic Studios seems to have it right with Square Off.

The basic formula for Square Off stays true to the genre, with the two thumbsticks controlling movement and fire, but Square Off departs from the usual in both graphics and gameplay. It’s a great combination that is only marred by the fact that it has no support for Xbox LIVE play, even if the local multiplayer is a complete blast.

Square Off actually features a story, which is something severely lacking in most thumbstick shooters on the marketplace today. Of course, the genre doesn’t lend itself well to story telling, but Square Off features just enough story to give you a reason to be playing as the cracked invention of a mad scientist in a last few desperate attempts to save the world from a horde of aliens.

Players take control of a square of their color choice, equipped with a basic ray gun and bombs, in order to fend off a horde of alien invaders. Each horde is divided into waves, similar to what you would find in a tower defense game, but the beauty of this formula is that it gives you time to organize with your friends in order to mutilate the waves as quickly as possible.

There are a wide variety of environments for you to explore, although you’re basically set in the arena that you choose, no matter if you are playing solo or with friends. The environments are lush and beautifully drawn, which makes for visually pleasing gameplay.

Aside from the typical shooting mechanics, one of the things that successfully sets Square Off apart from other games in the genre is the inclusion of several different types of weapons, and the ability to cycle through them. Traditionally, when you get a new weapon in a thumbstick shooter, you’re stuck with that weapon until you’ve used up the ammo. This has always been a gripe of mine, and it’s something Gnomic Studios successfully addressed by allowing you to cycle through all of your pickups.

This ability to reserve weapons for later adds a bit of strategy to the game, as you can use your standard ray gun to pick off rogue alien blobs and save those shotgun blasts for when you’ve got a mass of aliens bearing down on you. It’s also great when playing with friends, as you can plan your attacks together to ensure you’re blasting aliens with maximum efficiency and not worrying about who is getting what power up.

My only real complaint about the game is the fact that it lacks Xbox LIVE support, something that would have done wonders for improving the longevity of the game, considering it’s a game best played with friends. It can be enjoyable alone, but I can’t help but feel as though the inclusion of LIVE support could have rocketed Square Off from an Indie title into the Arcade category. Hopefully, this is something the developers will consider in the next iteration.

Square Off is pretty much a pure extract of fun if you can conjure four friends to gather around the same TV. But even if you can’t, you should give the game a run through solo. The graphics are wonderfully quirky, and the variety of weapons available keep the game from becoming tiresome after a  few waves of enemies. Square Off’s graphics and game play combined makes for an enjoyable experience that will have you plodding along to unlock new environments, slaughter even more aliens, and perhaps beat your best times.

Gamer Limit gives Square Off a 8/10.