Brian Provinciano of Vblank Entertainment has just unveiled another new trailer for his sprawling 8bit open city parody game, Retro City Rampage. This time we’re treated to a sneaky peak at one of the games many hidden bonuses. Take a look at this trailer to see a first glimpse at ‘Splosion Man in Retro City Rampage, both as a retro demake of ‘Splosion Man, and then you get to use his splode attack in the main game.

radiangames’ was easily one of the premeir, best of the best, Xbox Live Indie Game developers out there. He made games so slick, colorful, fun and professional for XBLIG that more often than not you could easily convince watchers that it was an XBLA game. Over the course of a year Luke Schneider released seven amazing games for Microsoft’s indie venture… and then he was done.

Unfortunately, despite the amazing-ness of the titles, XBLIG simply wasn’t a viable platform. It still isn’t for many developers. As such Luke is now bringing his expertise to another popular indie destination: iOS.

This Thursday marks the first radiangames release post-XBLIG and it’s as a continuation of one of my favorite radiangames classics: Crossfire. The appropriately titled Super Crossfire (for iPhone and iPod Touch) and Super Crossfire HD (iPad) will launch on Appl’es devices for a scant $0.99 and $2.99 respectively.

Here’s a bit about the game:

Super Crossfire is an intense shooter with a distinct twist: Players can warp between the bottom and top of the screen at any time. Combined with a massive upgrade system, intense gameplay, visuals, and audio, and a huge variety of enemy types and waves, Super Crossfire is the next evolution in the arcade shooter genre.

Personally, being a fan of radiangames and a huge Android proponent, I hope Super Crossfire also makes it’s way to the Googlier side of the smart phone spectrum. But even if it doesn’t I’m simply happy radiangames is back making fantastic games. Here’s hoping we see many more in the future.

[radiangames]

Twisted Pixel Games has announced today its new IP: The Gunstringer. Twisted Pixel hasn’t announced if The Gunstringer will be a retail game or one of the first downloadable Kinect XBLA games. Recently Twisted Pixel tweeted that if people attend PAX East, they can stop by for a playable demo of The Gunstringer and Ms. Splosion Man. Find out which controller is the fan-favorite for The Gunstringer in this trailer:

Twisted Pixel Games has published a new developer blog specifically for The Gunstringer. From the blog:

“The Gunstringer is a Kinect game where you get to marionette a kick-ass undead cowboy puppet through action packed stage performances. Everything is set as if it’s an actual play performance, complete with hand crafted ‘actors’ and props.”

The puppets and hand-crafted art allows the team to get away with “some pretty far out characters, settings, and plot twists that would just seem insane in a straight western story.” The blog reports that there are no minigames, forced gestures, or end of level photos to pose for. Possibly best of all, gamers can play it sitting down. This is an upgrade for all those past marionette handlers who had to stand during their entire production.

Twisted Pixel has fine-tuned its 2D and 3D action mechanics in its previous games. The Maw was their first independent outing; it was a fun 3D action/adventure game for Xbox LIVE Arcade that also released on most major digital distribution channels. The team then released ‘Spolsion Man, not this horrible ripoff, which was a 2D platformer that tested the patience of many a gamer, almost unanimously  to everyone’s delight, despite a couple camera angle issues. DIY’s Peter reviewed the hilarious antics of Comic Jumper last year. The team seems to have taken those awesome run and gun and platformer elements from Comic Jumper and added a unique marionette twist to it, living up to its Twisted namesake.

Source: IGN

Have you ever played ‘Splosion Man? It’s a really great XBLA game done by some amazing independent developers going by the name Twisted Pixel. I know, I’ve never heard of them either (/sarcasm). Anyway, if you really, really enjoyed ‘Splosion Man you should be happy because the game is totally an iOS game now… sorta.

Apparently, and let this be a lesson to any developers in the audience, Capcom Mobile has released a game onto the iOS App Store called MaXplosion, a platformer than plays very similarly to ‘Splosion Man:

Notice the “slight” similarities? Yeah, they aren’t so slight. Apparently Capcom has decided to just straight rip-off almost everything that made ‘Splosion Man a great game. Good for you Capcom, showing independent developers how to properly run a scummy business.

Oh and here’s the final kicker for you: Twisted Pixel actually pitched ‘Splosion man to Capcom prior to release, which they (SURPRISE!) turned down.

[via Kotaku]

Some good console games that fall under our humble gaze will see solid to amazing discounts this week on both the Playstation Network and the Xbox Live Marketplace.

How’s 50% off titles such as Joe Danger, DeathSpank, Trials HD, Fat Princess and PixelJunk Racers 2nd Lap? NOT GOOD ENOUGH???

Alright, what about Twisted Pixel’s ‘Splosion Man for just $2 — will that satisfy your savings bloodlust? If not, just throw some cranberry sauce in the mix and that’ll do the trick.

The PSN sale ends November 26, while the Xbox Live daily discounts run through November 29. Note that while the PS3 deals are all available for the whole time, the Xbox deals will run as short sales popping up each day. We’ll be sure to point out the relevant offers as they hit.

Here are all the discounts offered on the services indie or otherwise:

PlayStation 3

• PixelJunk Racers 2nd Lap – $3.49 sale price; $6.99 regular price
• Top Gun – $7.49 sale price; $14.99 regular price
• DeathSpank – $7.49 sale price; $14.99 regular price
• Joe Danger – $7.49 sale price; $14.99 regular price
• Gundemonium Collection – $7.49 sale price; $14.99 regular price

PSP

• Groovin’ Blocks PSP – $4.99 sale price; $9.99 regular price
• Fat Princess: Fistful of Cake – $9.99 sale price; $19.99 regular price
• Dissidia Final Fantasy – $9.99 sale price; $19.99 regular price
• Dante’s Inferno PSP – $19.99 sale price; $39.99 regular price
• Metal Gear Solid Peace Walker – $19.99 sale price; $39.99 regular price

PlayStation Minis

• Young Thor – $2.49 sale price; $4.99 regular price
• Fieldrunners – $3.49 sale price; $6.99 regular price
• Hero of Sparta – $2.49 sale price; $4.99 regular price
• Alien Zombie Death – $1.99 sale price; $3.99 regular price
• Monopoly – $2.49 sale price; $4.99 regular price

Xbox Live Arcade

• Madden NFL Arcade (400MSP)
• Portal: Still Alive (400MSP)
• The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition (400MSP)
• ‘Splosion Man (160MSP)
• Trials HD (400MSP)

Xbox Originals

• Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (400MSP)
• Halo: Combat Evolved (400MSP)

Retail Sales

• Fable 3 ($39.99 or less at participating retailers)
• Halo: Reach ($39.99 or less at participating retailers)

[via Shacknews]

Live or work in the greater Austin area and have a thing for indie or independently developed video games? Well, you’re in luck as this year’s Fantastic Fest has announced quite a line up of Texas-based developers to showcase at this year’s Arcade event:

• Devolver Digital – Serious Sam HD
• GameSalad – iOS game creation tools for non-programmers
• Powerhouse Animation – Flash games!
• Ricochet Labs – QRANK
• GL33K Audio – game audio creation
• Playtechtonics – Starport: Galactic Empires
• Semi Secret Software – Canabalt, wurdle, Gravity Hook HD
• Twisted Pixel – ‘Splosion Man, The Maw, Comic Jumper

So, yeah, this seems like a fantastic way to spend an afternoon, especially if you’re more interested in learning how games are created.

Fantastic Fest Arcade begins on September 23rd and ends on the 26th. Tickets cost $10/day for a simple games demo pass, $20/day for a games, panels, parties, etc. pass, and $60 for a VIP pass which lets you in for all four days and you get access to all of the above mentioned activities.

If you are at all interested in attending please visit the Fantastic Fest website.

[Fantastic Fest]

Twisted Pixel is something of an indie success story – and that might be putting it mildly. While there are around twenty employees now, with more being considered as I type, the company was originally started with just a few. The team jumped up to six or seven folks for The Maw’s development and moved ever forward as ‘splosion Man did great and now we sit on the precipice of their third game’s release.

Based in Austin, Texas this company has a vision and everything they’ve created so far has gotten them to Comic Jumper. Using a custom engine they call “The Beard,” they’ve been steadily adding features with each game they create. The Maw started in three dimensions, and then things were shaken down to two dimensions for ‘splosion Man. Utilizing a mix of the two, Comic Jumper now does a lot of switching between two and three dimensions in order to showcase he most robust use of the engine yet. The majority of the game plays out in a two dimensional platformer plane, but there are also driving segments that segue into three dimensions and shooter segments where you’re not just shooting in 2D, but actually into the background of the level. Your ability to smack bad guys also sends them careening into the background of the levels, smashing through windows and other fragile things throughout.

The Maw hit XBLA in January 2009 with ‘splosion Man not far behind in July. Thus Comic Jumper has required the longest development cycle of all their titles to date. But the game has been done for a while and they’re actually already working on another top secret game that we hope to hear about soon. The game is going to be another iteration of “The Beard” engine with the most features packed in yet.

Captain Smiley, the Comic Jumper protagonist, was originally conceived by one of the founding members of Twisted Pixel in the seventh grade. I don’t know if you’d count that as the beginning of the development cycle, but it at least gives some credibility to bringing a dream into reality. Captain Smiley has a talking star on his chest, with the relationship being akin to an old married couple who argue a lot. Their dialogue is great and Comic Jumper is Twisted Pixel’s first game with full voice acting. If you recall, ‘splosion Man had a lot of what I’d call plain gibberish.

If you’ve been following Comic Jumper at all, you’ll know that it’s a side-scrolling (mostly) beat-’em-up that follows Captain Smiley through four different comic worlds. Twisted Pixel claims the full experience will clock in at around six hours. The reason for the jumping through the worlds is due to the fact that Captain Smiley is broke and needs to make cameo appearances in other comics in order to regain his fortune and re-launch his own comic book. So as you travel as a guest through these other comics and defeat bosses, once you return to your own base, you’ll see the bosses hanging out like they’re on break on a movie set. After all, the comic action is all staged but the base is real life where you’re just dealing with other people in the business. This nonchalance is makes for more hilarious dialogue in all the times in between actual levels. In your base you can also upgrade your skills to get stronger

The latest style of comic book they revealed is Manga. I played through a level of this zone featuring the cute but oh so deadly characters the Kid Cupids. Like Manga itself, the game moves from right to left and attacks and other explosive elements are highlighted with bursts of hearts. I rode a unicorn mercilessly through the black and white Mange plains while shooting down demons. It’s a great addition to an already contrast-packed game that has come together well.

The full game will have twelve levels that are split between 2D side-scrolling, vehicular segments and shooting with targets. Twisted Pixel are excited about the fact that Comic Jumper is full of unlockables and you’ll actually be able to unlock content for ‘splosion Man as well as avatar accessories, interviews, concept art and music. Lots to do. This is all compounded by leaderboards that track everything from how much money you earned in a level to to how fast you made it to the end to how many points you tallied. They’ve filled the game to the brim with content and Twisted Pixel and comic fans alike should be excited about this new game.

Comic Jumper will release on XBLA on October 6th for 1200 Microsoft Points. Read more about it on Twisted Pixel’s website.

Way back in 2004, Microsoft launched a, then practically unknown, digitial distribution channel on their popular Xbox gaming platform known as the Xbox Live Arcade. It was the very first digital distribution platform on a major console and, even today, it continues to be the best. But that doesn’t mean that it’s perfect.

Earlier this month, we reported on a highly controversial news piece that claimed Machinarium was refused by Microsoft be allowed onto the Xbox Live Arcade platform, citing that they (Microsoft) did not want to publish a game that was not exclusive to their own platforms (Machinarium was released on OSX and Linux as well as PC, originally). What was not widely known at the time was not that Microsoft was simply disallowing Machinarium from appearing on the channel, it was that Microsoft requires a publisher in order to be on the platform, whether it be through themselves or a 3rd party publisher ala Activision, EA, etc.

What this essentially means is that Microsoft, based on the rules it had set for everybody putting games on the XBLA, hadn’t really acted in the wrong, it had simply acted in its own best interest. After all, do we expect Sony to publish a game that appears on the Xbox 360 or Nintendo Wii? No. Microsoft is competing in the desktop OS space just as much as Sony is competing in the console space. So, naturally, it should be their choice with whom they publish.

But why does an XBLA game need an established publisher at all?

Microsoft has made no qualms about it, XBLA is for higher valued, better established franchises and Xbox Live Indie Games is  for hobby games/unknown smaller titles. This is how Microsoft has seemingly divided up the digital downloadable titles over the years. But there’s two problems with this method of distribution.

1. There is a middle ground in between the established developer/publisher titles and the hobby/unknown titles that are getting the shaft with this method. A game like Machinarium is easily of XBLA quality. It has the charm, the appeal, and the production values. It also has a raving fan base and an established PC version to back up it’s sales claims. Beyond even that, however, Machinarium was created by an established developer, Amanita Designs, whose been around for years creating high quality games.

Now sure, Amanita could simply go to a new publisher and use them to get their game onto the channel, but at that point they are now allowing both Microsoft and, let’s say EA (just as an example) to each take a significant cut. This would make sense in the physical retail world where Microsoft supplies the console and EA supplies the distribution, packaging, disc making etc. but in the XBLA world what would EA do? There’s no physical distribution or packaging or anything. They would simply be a name that is leaching money from Amanita simply because Microsoft requires it.

This means that if Amanita wants to keep the majority of the profits and continue to be on the Xbox console it has only one other option, Xbox Live Indie Games. And here is where our second problems lies.

2. Xbox Live Indie Games is not meant for high production valued games. There I said it. It’s not and probably won’t ever be. I love the XBLIG channel, but I’m not going to pretend that the service is offering anything comparable to the XBLA in terms of production value.

But this is also a good thing for many gamers. With XBLIG we get an awesome channel filled to the brim with plenty of hobby/small games of which most are a single dollar and where the most you’ll ever spend there is either $3 or $5. That’s awesome! Dollar gaming on a console is something that was unheard of prior to the XBLIG channel launching.

Unfortunately, Machinarium (like Braid and ‘Splosion Man before it) is not a $1, $3, or $5 game. I know many of you are probably hoping that it would be, but it simply is not. The game is a masterful work of art filled with puzzles and gameplay that far surpass most things on the XBLA channel, let alone the XBLIG channel. And if it were priced higher on the XBLIG channel, it would be ignored, criticized, and lamented because we’ve been trained to think otherwise about XBLIG pricing.

Going beyond even simple pricing issues, Microsoft simply does not market their indie channel enough to really make it a viable option for anything larger than a hobby game. So many games get put on the service each week, and so little money is used to market them that often times games sink below the fold before ever being noticed by gamers. Additionally, I’m not even fully convinced most gamers even know about the service. I’ve mentioned it a couple times to a few of my Halo/Call of Duty friends and they didn’t even really know what it was, and had never been there prior.

This makes the channel completely unusable for self-published titles the size of Machinarium.

So there’s my argument, and really, who is going to lose out by doing this? I’m not saying Microsoft has to allow every game that wants on the service and I definitely believe in having a continued approval certification process for the XBLA. But why should independent games of high production value be rejected simply because Microsoft doesn’t want to publish it themselves? They don’t have to at all!

Microsoft had a lot to gain by allowing Machinarium on the channel. Perhaps monetary, perhaps not. But what it would have done was seriously shown that Microsoft does not just pay token lip service to indie developers. It would have shown that they are truly interested in titles that portray the kind of production value as is the standard on Xbox Live Arcade.

Nobody is asking Microsoft to put their name on the game, market it, or do anything else. All they have to do is allow the game on their channel (of which still shares many games with the Playstation Network) and then take their share of the money as gamers buy it. It’s as simple as that.

Microsoft, it’s time to allow self published games.

P.S. And yes, I’m well aware that Amanita or whoever else can simply go to the Playstation Network where Sony allows self-published titles. That is a bright spot for the PSN, but there’s also a reason developers want to be on XBLA. It’s a proven distribution channel that consistently receives better marketing and higher sales.

What do you think? Should Microsoft allow self-published titles or should they continue the way it is now?

Last week, Mega 64 released a hilarious new sketch, one that really speaks to us here at DIYgamer.com. It was simply titled Indie Films and it was about making full motion pictures films out of various indie games such as: Super Meat Boy, Today I Die, Rocketbirds, etc. While the sketch, itself, was really good, it also got me thinking. Maybe indie games aren’t necessarily going to make great films, but what about cartoons?

While Hollywood is only too happy with finding and securing the rights to the major multi-million dollar titles out there like Call of Duty, Metal Gear Solid, and World of Warcraft (seriously), I feel like there is an untapped market for creating children’s, or even adult (that that kind of adult, pervert), cartoons out of some of the great indie games out there today.

I mean, look at it this way, many popular indie games rely on cartoon-ish graphics already, usually featuring some cutesy character, and are almost always fun to watch/play. I’m telling you, kids would eat these shows up just as much as they do their Saturday morning cereal. Mmmmm Kix.

So here are my top ten games I’d love to see made into some sort of animated cartoon.

10.Cave Story

Now don’t get your knickers in a knot simply because Cave Story is so low on this list, where as with most other indie games lists it’s at the top. Cave Story is still very well suited for a cartoon series, but more than likely a kids show, which is fine (I do enjoy me some Spongebob every once in a while), but ultimately not that exciting.

[Cave Story]

9. La Mulana

This is in a similar vein as Cave Story, but with one added feature, the main character is basically Indiana Jones without actually being Indiana Jones, which immediately makes it infinitely more intriguing to watch. As an added bonus, to make it a hilarious adult cartoon, the show could be literally based on the game where, in every single episode, Lemeza (the main character) would die at the end… because that game is freaking impossible.

Alternative titles: Spelunky.

[La Mulana]

8. World of Goo

I don’t know how, and I don’t know why exactly, but you look at World of Goo and tell me that it’s not already completely adaptable to being made into a cartoon. I mean, come on the goo-blobs are adorable! I suppose the hard part would be actually coming up with a story based on them because, if you’ll remember correctly, the game didn’t really feature one.

[World of Goo]

7. Runman: Race Around the World

Parents, and the government, are always complaining about children who are sitting at home playing video games or watching cartoons on the boobtube. Well, why not speak to the children with something they’ll actually pay attention to? And what better vassal to speak to them through than Runman, the extremely excitable running star that, literally, races all around the world just for the hell of it. Perhaps it’ll get the message through to the children, or make them just want to play the game, whatever.

[Runman: Race Around the World]

6. Trine

Talk about epic, is there a better game to make an epic cartoon out of than Trine? I think not. It also doesn’t hurt that the game ends right where the cartoon can begin. Trine was a beautifully imagined indie game and, provided they use a similar illustration style, the cartoon can be just as amazing. Children’s cartoon or not, I’d watch this.

[Trine]

5. The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom

Do I even really need to offer an argument or explanation for this one. This game is about a time manipulating, pie thief! Come on! It practically writes hilarious scripts all by itself. The only reason why I didn’t place it higher is because I’m not exactly sure how well a black and white cartoon would go over with either children or adults. Still though, I’d say it’d at least be an interesting ride.

[Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom]

4. Ben There, Dan That

I have trouble not smiling about a cartoon comedy based on this game, but only, and I do mean only, if the original creators Ben Ward and Dan Marshall are brought on board to write/direct. Otherwise who knows what it could turn into. Still though, the thought of this time and space traveling duo on Comedy Central, or Adult Swim is incredibly exciting.

[Ben There, Dan That]

3. Plain Sight

Two words: Robot Ninjas. Sure, there’s no story and really no purpose to the game other than scoring points, but if you can successfully translate these guys into a story that still encompasses their robot ninja-ness while at the same time continuing to make them suicidal, well that… that would be just the best thing ever.

[Plain Sight]

2. ‘Splosion Man

You’ve GOT to agree with me on this one. I mean, first, the game looks like it was created by Pixar already. Second, you look at ‘Splosion Man and tell me he’s not just the most creative and memorable character ever imagined. Tie all that into a hilarious cartoon and you have an instant success. Children or adult’s cartoon, I’d watch it.

['Splosion Man]

1. Machinarium

And Machinarium takes another top spot on a list, but in this one it’s only because the story was so well played out and the animations so elaborately done that, for me, Machinarium makes the most sense to turn into an animated cartoon. Sure, it probably wouldn’t attract the largest audience, and children probably wouldn’t enjoy the macabre colors, but if they could create a successful retelling of the game, or even a series on what happens after I’d be completely overjoyed.

[Machinarium]

Honorable Mentions:

Super Meat Boy, Joe Danger,  and Braid. The former two games didn’t make the list because, well, I haven’t played them yet. The latter because the game’s story was far too abstract for even many adults to comprehend. Still, I imagine, with the write direction, each could be fairly entertaining in their own right.

Did I miss a game you thought would make a great cartoon? Let me know in the comments, or rant about it in our forums!

Spring Cleaning Contest!

Did you know we are running a kickass forum contest where you could win a copy of Machinarium, Shattered Horizon, or Aaaaa! A Reckless Disregard for Gravity?

Check it out!

Nominations for Spike TV’s Video Game Awards 2009 have been announced, included in the awards again is the Best Independent Game (apparently fueled by Mtn Dew) with this year’s four finalists being Twisted Pixel’s ‘Splosion Man, Hemisphere’s Osmos, RedLynx’s Trials HD and thatgamecompany’s Flower.

You can vote for your favorite here. Spike’s VGA 2009 takes place December 12, where the winners will be announced.

Last year 2DBoy’s World of Goo beat out other top indie’s Braid, Pixeljunk Eden and Audiosurf for the award.