August: Month of downloadable games, XBLA, PSN, get those funbucks out. Options

[Crushinator]

Although August is a pretty slow month on the retail side of gaming (outside of Madden 09), the downloadable games are exploding this month. Sometimes its easy to miss them since they may not get as much big headline promotion, but there are asome serious "must plays" for August on the download scene.

Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved 2 (XBLA; 800 points) Already out



Followup to the original XBLA classic, its pretty much twitch gaming perfection. GeoWars2 brings 5 new modes to the table, including the brilliant "Pacifist" mode, where you see how big of a score you can get by not fighting. The thing I love most about GW2 though, is the immediate notification of your scoreboard standings. As soon as you start the game it shows the leaderboard for every game mode, so you can see just where all your friends are in relation to you. It really revives that old arcade "oh hell naw that guys initials are above mine?" feeling. You almost can't leave the game without busting up at least SOMEONE's high score. Of course just like GW1, the presentation and music are top tier, and the new multiplayer modes are a cool addition, but unfortunately are local multiplayer only.

Pixeljunk: Eden (PSN; $9.99) Already out



Latest from Q-games PixelJunk series, this is the ultimate chill-out game. The basic premise is you are this bug with a little line of silk to swing on, going around gathering pollen to make plants grow so you can reach the goal point. There are time limits on each stage which keep the action moving, and the physics of the swinging/jumping movement are lots of fun to control. Visually it has this really cool simple high contrast style, and the music is simply fantastic.

Braid (XBLA; 1200 Points) Already out



The video can't really show how amazing this game is... you just need to play it. Its a puzzle-platformer where your character can control time, and at the same time its a fantastic art-gaming piece with hauntingly beautiful painted backdrops, smooth animation, and a stirring soundtrack. All I can say is play the demo, and when you reach the end of the first world you will immediately press the "buy now" button. I can't stress how fucking awesome this game is.

Bionic Commando: Rearmed (XBLA, PSN, PC; 800 points, $10, $15) 8-13-08



I'm sure everyone knows about this game, but its out this week! For the uninitiated, its a full remake of the NES version of Bionic Commando with a shitload of new stuff thrown in. New moves, weapons, challenge stages, remixed music, and 2 player local co-op! At only $10 for the console versions this much gameplay is a freakin' STEAL. Check out the behind the scenes videos on gametrailers to get a good feel for how the guys at Grin are really putting a lot of love into BC:R.

Galaga Legions (XBLA, 800 points) 8-20-08



In the same fashion as Pac-Man C.E., Namco Bandai is releasing a true sequel to Galaga. The neon-infused 80's style looks great with the intense wave after wave of space bugs to blast.

Ratched & Clank Future: Quest for Booty (PSN, TBA) 8-21-08



This is a cool change of pace, instead of a full-fledged followup to R&CF, they are doing this kinda mini-sequel, and making it downloadable and "at a lower price point" than retail, which could mean anything less than $60 I guess, haha.

[AC9breaker]

Thats waaay too many games. Braid looks pretty awesome and I've heard nothing but good things. But as it is, my time and money is limited. I'm still playing some other games I still have to death such as Soul Calibur and I'm also picking up Disgaea 3 at the end of this month. The only game that I'm toally picking up is Bionic Commando. That game is going to be so incredibly hardcore and awesome I think everyone here should buy it, especially for 800 points/10 dollars. While other peeps charge you 1200 for simple ports or for incomplete shitty episodic gaming ala Penny Arcade, these guys are giving you a steal of a deal and you would be a fool to not pick up.

[DarkEpyon]

AC is right, that is one hell of a value right there. Bionic Commando was one of my favorite games growing up, so I'm definitely not missing this one. I didn't realize this till the other day, but the soundtrack for said game has been around since May (when it was originally due out). I really like how they remixed the classic tracks for this game.

[Crushinator]

You guys gotta at least play the demo for Braid, its so damn brilliant.

[Vitamin D]

Bionic Commando was a given, I was going to Download that anyway. However, Crush sent me a message that had the link to Braid. I played the demo, and I LOVE it. I'm getting the full version tomorrow as the weekend's been pretty busy for me. Braid is astonishing. I love games that come out of no where and impress the hell out of me (the last game to do this was The World Ends With You). Seriously, you guys HAVE to at least give it a try. It's like Mario meets Prince of Persia haha. You won't be let down, this I can promise.

[Ether]

One more game that I'm surprised didn't get a mention

Castle Crashers (XBLA; ??? points) August 27th



4 player beat em up in the vein of classics like Guardian Heroes or Ninja Turtles arcade game, between this and Braid I actually want a 360 now...

[Crushinator]

Crap! Haha yeah I was gonna put that in the OP, but I spaced it off somehow. Hopefully that one makes it out this month... It's been a long time coming and looks fun as hell

High time to get a 360, Ether, get out of the gaming ghetto!

[tanshin]

I'm pretty psyched for bionic commando as well. It's going to be amazing.

And as if enough hasn't already been said, Braid is a really great game. It is artsy without being pretentious, and the game play is the type that is really simple, also but goes a long way with that simplicity. I don't think I'm as good a gamer as most other people in AT, so I found the game exceedingly difficult. However, the game is so great that it just pulls me back in for more even if I'm frustrated. World 4 is my arch nemesis, and I'm still currently trying to beat it...it's been a couple days now Maybe I'll knock it out today

I love downloadable games so much.

[Crushinator]

Anyone else grab Castle Crashers this week? I forgot about it last night but I'm about to download it now. Gotta bust some heads online co-op!

[AC9breaker]

I'm down for some co-op. I've got like 2k points sitting on my account. Was gonna get both this and braid since it feels like I owe it to myelf to get braid.

[Vitamin D]

I have Castle Crashers too. Though between Tales of Vesperia and Disgaea 3, I haven't been able to play it much. For sure though, we need to get down on some 4 player co-op.

[Crushinator]

Oh shiiiiiit Castle Crashers rocks. Everyone's gotta get in on this, just oldschool beatemup action with some RPG-style leveling up and character customization thrown in. It really feels like the classic D+D Capcom arcade games with a mix of Golden Axe and an uproarious sense of humor.

Another game I overlooked this month was "The Last Guy." on PSN. You play titular "Last Guy", humanity's only savoir in the wake of a zombie apocalypse. The game is played from an overhead view, and uses real-wold sattelite imagery for the stages, so you play in real cities, which is pretty cool. You need to round up survivors and take them to evac zones before the time limit is up, evading and outsmarting different types of zombies along the way. As you resue more people they start to "snake" behind you in a long crowd, and if you can manage to encircle an entire area with the crowd you instantly rescue everyone within that circle. It adds a bit of strategy to the game, along with managing your stamina meter so you can flee from the monsters quickly. The overall visual style and music is weirdly upbeat and lends an irreverent feel to the game.

The Last Guy. (PSN, $9.99) Out now

[Crushinator]

Just had a kickass night of Castle Crashers with Vitamin D and Naba yesterday. Everyone's gotta snag this, its just too damn fun, and absolutely hilarious. The only bad thing I can say about it is the online play is a bit buggy with random drops for no reason sometimes, bout outside that the whole game is outstanding.

[Vitamin D]

Yeah that was a kick ass session we had. The game's multiplayer is amazing, and it has this addicting quality you can't shake haha. Like Crush mentioned though, there are some connection bugs that can randomly end the game. The Behemoth is working on a patch though, so it'll be a temporary issue (hopefully). Castle Crashers is definitely on the menu for the next podcast, so everyone get down on it. You can do no wrong by getting it.

[Crushinator]

The Behemoth is giving away the "King Pack" expansion to Castle Crashers. From their site:

http://devblog.thebehemoth.com/?p=1095

Hello! We have always wanted our King Pack for Castle Crashers to be FREE. And it’s not!! SO, in order to achieve this we went ahead and bought a ton of download codes from Microsoft for our King Pack to give to you. Yes!

All that you have to do to receive the code for FREE stuff is write “behemoth loves me!” on the Behemoth Loves Me! forum thread and Kelly shall private-message you your code for a FREE King Pack to download for Castle Crashers.

Now — Kelly has been copying and pasting hundreds before I even posted this so please keep in mind that you might not get your code instantly - she asks that you please be patient. She’s making good time but her hands might break and we’ll have to tape them together again.

We will run out eventually so if you want this you must pounce!

Get while the getting's good, I suppose!