Podcast wrapup - Tron gets panned, Bionic Commando discusses price

Two podcasts have come out this week discussing XBLA games:

The Player One Podcast discusses Discs of Tron this week, discussing the differences to the original and how it.. really hasn't held up very well. It's the first "LIVE" podcast POP have ever done too, well worth the listen for some pre-GDC discussion.

It's a different kind of podcast this week. Greg is absent, CJ and Phil are LIVE from San Francisco. It's the first time we've recorded an episode where any of us were in the same room. We talk about the Game Developers Conference and seeing it from two angles (press and industry), as well as some of the bigger news of the week (NPD numbers, oh boy!).

But we spend most of the show talking about the games we've been playing over the past week. And that includes Lost Odyssey, Blue Dragon, Professor Layton and the Curious Village, PixelJunk Monsters, Team Fortress 2, Poker Smash, Discs of TRON, LEGO Star Wars TCS, Endless Ocean and Warriors Orochi.

Download here or join the RSS Feed.

Second up is the official Bionic Commando Podcast, who discuss Bionic Commando Rearmed a little, including what price point it will be released at:

It's two gaming media veterans for the price of one: podcast legend and "Gaming Jesus" Mark MacDonald, and the founder of localization company 8-4 and longtime Japan resident John Riccardi, join us on the show, discussing the games industry in Japan and abroad. We'll also be talking about the Alpha version of Bionic Commando, and debating the price point for Bionic Commando Rearmed.

Download here or join the RSS feed.

Edit: The Official Bionic Commando website has also put up an article about Bionic Commando pricing, including a poll which might determine the price in the very end.

You can view the article here.

Review round up: Discs of Commanders

Reviews have trickled out for Both DOT and Commanders, the former getting an overall poor reception, while the latter is getting some decent scores!

Commanders: Attack of the Genos

- Xbox360 @ IGN.com reviewed by Erik Brudvig - 7.6/10
- Team Xbox reviewed by David Chapman - 8.5/10

Discs of Tron

- Xbox360 @ IGN.com reviewed by Hilary Goldstein - 3/10
- Team Xbox reviewed by David Chapman - 3/10

Commanders and Discs of Tron are out!

Developer: SouthEnd Interactive
Publisher: Sierra Online
Genre: Strategy and Sims
Price: 800 Microsoft Points
Availability: Worldwide (with the exception of Japan and Korea)

Xbox.com Splash Page
Official NeoGAF Thread


Developer: Backbone Entertainment
Publisher: Disney Interactive Studios
Genre: Coin-Op Classics
Price: 400 Microsoft Points
Availability: Worldwide (with the exception of Japan and Korea)
Xbox.com Splash Page
Official(ish) NeoGAF Thread

Source: Major Nelson

Official: Commanders and Discs of Tron are your games of the week!

Sierra and Disney Interactive have officially announced that Both Commanders and Discs of Tron will launch on Wednesday, February 13 at 9:00 a.m. GMT (1:00 a.m. PST).

“Commanders: Attack of the Genos” is a fast-paced turn-based strategy game featuring an art deco look and tongue-in-cheek storyline. The game requires players to devise a masterful tactical battle strategy to both cripple the enemy and defend their territory from Genos, a genetically modified super race. Fight alongside a powerful Commander, which serves as a hero unit, in the 15-mission campaign with an arsenal of weapons including missile launchers, bombers and infantry in this turn-based strategy game.

Featuring a 1930’s art deco look and feel, “Commanders: Attack of the Genos” offers two unique endings, two difficulty levels and 15 diverse playable units to keep gamers coming back for more. “Commanders: Attack of the Genos” allows players to either challenge or team up with three friends in battle locally or over Xbox LIVE.

Click here for release screenshots of Commanders: AOTG.
Click here for the official Xbox.com web page.

According to the Southend Interactive website, they are also the developers behind the new Lode Runner XBLA game along with Tozai!

And Discs of Tron:

In “Discs of Tron,” gamers play as Tron in an attempt to defeat the evil Sark in an electronic battleground, using the iconic disc weapon. Survive 12 levels of Sark’s attacks in the single-player campaign or grab a friend and face off in multiplayer mode over Xbox LIVE to discover the true disc champion.

Click here for release screenshots of Discs of Tron.
Click here for the official Xbox.com webpage.

From games we know of, DOT is the last announced (Not counting ESWAT / Crack Down) Coin-Op classic coming from Digital Eclipse - I wonder what they're working on now..

Source: Xbox.com

Spoke too soon: Discs of Tron coming next week!

The second Arcade Tron game is officially coming out next week!

"Discs of Tron is considered an arcade classic as it mesmerized fans who wanted an entertaining and challenging experience derived from the innovative film," said Craig Relyea, senior vice president of global marketing, Disney Interactive Studios. "The game's release on Xbox LIVE Arcade enables multiple generations to play the addictive game in both its original form from 25 years ago and an enhanced mode with upgraded graphics and sound."

Apparently OXM gave Discs of Tron an 8/10 score, but some of these classics have been getting mixed reactions - particularly especially the first Tron.

Videos of DOT in Clasic and Enhanced mode have also shown up on Gamevideos. Check them out:

- Discs of Tron XBLA 'Classic' HD
- Discs of Tron XBLA 'Enhanced' HD

Now it's up in the air for what's coming out as well: Commanders or N? We'll know Monday, so stay tuned!

Source: "Discs of Tron Enters the Arena, Coming to XBLA next week." @ IGN.com

Preview & Review Wrapup: Tron, Penny Arcade, and Pirates

Gamespot have just gotten around to reviewing the classic game Tron from the release a few weeks ago.

Click here to read Gamespot's review of Tron.

They also have some new impressions of the upcoming Penny Arcade Adventures game

Click here to read Gamespot's PAA Impressions.

And finally, Teamxbox.com have some new impressions of Gamecock and Blazing Lizard's Pirates vs. Ninjas Dodgeball Click here to read them.

Nothing more needs to be said!