They've both been quite some time in coming, and this Wednesday will see the release of new downloadable content for games that are themselves downloadable. N+ will be getting a new level pack which contains 150 single player levels, and 50 co-op levels, all for 200pts (which, as the devs point out, equates to a point per level). As for Puzzle Quest, its player named DLC, Revenge of the Plague Lord, will contain 4 new classes, a new map area, 25 new quests, 40 more items and a raise of the level cap. The Puzzle Quest expansion will be priced at 700pts.
If you haven't tried the original yet Puzzle Quest yet, now would be a great time what with that price drop. As for the sequel (which we still can't believe is actually being made), Puzzle Quest Galactrix had its first bit of gameplay released which shows off some of the changed game mechanics.
Changing over from a grid based system to a hex-based system would mean of course that gems wouldn't fall when those beneath them were removed, so the play field has been moved into zero gravity. Now, the gems will "fall" in the direction that they were swapped. Move a gem diagonally up and to the right and the gems from diagonally down and to the left will move to fill the space.
If that sounds confusing check the gameplay video after the break. And the current release window is the first quarter of 2009.
You know, ever since Microsoft released DOOM in the middle of X06, we've become used to the idea that we should expect some killer games during big events. Last year's E3 gave us Golden Axe and Sonic the Hedgehog. During GDC this year, Microsoft released demos of XNA Community Games, including the highly anticipated XBLA release Dishwasher: Dead Samurai. Naturally, we were really fired up to see what would happen during E3 next week. So, what are we getting? Coffeetime Crosswords. Yes, SRSLY. Other than that, there will be free Buku Sudoku DLC and Puzzle Quest is joining Arcade Hits at the reduced price of 800 MS Points (a 400 point cut).
Barring any surprises, it's looking like the tradition has been broken.
Since there was no XBLA release last week, we need some good news when it comes to the Live Arcade, and the ESRB delivers for us, rating three two and a half new XBLA games. The half game is the user-named Puzzle Quest expansion pack, Revenge of the Plague Lord. The two full games are Samurai Showdown II, a Neo-Geo fighting game, and Red Baron Arcade which is a World War I arcade flying shooter with graphics similar to Battlezone. Now, as is normal with this type of crystal ball gazing, no one knows when these games actually will see final release; with a bit of an exception for Revenge of the Plague Lord though. Since it's simply DLC it will probably be released as soon as it's ready.
When the new content for Bejewe - er, we mean Puzzle Quest, was originally announced, it was simply a nameless, detail-less waif. Now it's back with a player-created name and the full list of it's contents. Submitted by A. Puchniarz of Pasadena, CA, the pack is to be known as Revenge of the Plague Lord. The DLC will contain four new classes: Bard, Rogue, Ranger and Warlock. As well as an expansion to the Southern Map that in itself contains over 25 quests, 50 spells, and 40 items, plus a host of new monsters, bosses and more. The story to the expansion has to do with"Antharg, the Lord of Plague and brother to the infamous Lord Bane." But as of now, we have no idea when you'll get to meet Antharg, as D3 was so excited about their DLC that they just couldn't give us anything on the release other than "Spring 2008."
D3Publisher just announced a new Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords expansion that's set to release to the Xbox Live Marketplace sometime this Spring and it's packed full of goodies. It'll be an expansion comprised of four new Hero professions, new items, new spells, new quests, new monsters, a new enemy and the list goes on and on. It's an exciting piece of DLC for fans of Puzzle Quest, except there is one tiny problem. D3Publisher doesn't have a name for the DLC ... oops.
So fanboys, that's where you come in. How they see it, Puzzle Quest fans are a knowledgeable and creative enough bunch to name the new set of DLC in their official Puzzle Quest DLC naming contest. Kicking off later today, you can head on over to the Puzzle Quest's official website through March 21st to recommend a name for the DLC. So, go ahead and get your creativity on, help D3Publisher and make the Puzzle Quest world a better place to live. We have faith you'll do the right thing.
Today, D3Publisher and Infinite Interactive sent out word that the latest in the Puzzle Quest franchise, Puzzle Quest: Galactrix will be releasing to the Xbox Live Arcade sometime this Fall. Details are light, but D3Publisher revealed that Galactrix will take the franchise into the sci-fi genre, nearly opposite of its older brother Puzzle Quest: CotW. D3Publisher also promise to include a "rich and detailed storyline and fresh gameplay elements" into the mix. Which is a good thing, we wouldn't want Galactrix to have a non-existent storyline or stale gameplay elements ... that gets a thumbs up from us. Feel free to browse the Puzzle Quest: Galactrix concept art, renders and screenshots in the super awesome gallery below.
Today is an interesting day for Xbox Live Arcade. We have two new games available, both of which have someting unique to bring to the service. First, there's Puzzle Quest, which is a combination of a role playing game and a puzzle game. Every time players do battle with a monster, they do so by playing a round of Bejeweled. See? Interesting, no? Yaris, on the other hand, presents XBLA with its first advergame. If you're not hip to the latest cars, a Yaris is a vehicle from Toyota. If a free game featuring said vehicle is enough to make you consider purchasing one, then we suppose those marketers will be getting a hefty Christmas bonus this year. You should probably know that a real Yaris won't drive up walls and on ceilings though. Puzzle Quest may be had for the always controversial price of 1200 MS Points. Yaris, as we mentioned above, is free.
Even though we were tipped off about one XBLA release this week Microsoft decided to surprise us with another. Releasing to the XBLA this Wednesday, October 10th are two new Arcade offerings including the puzzle adventure Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords which is priced at 1200 Microsoft points and a racing game sponsored by Toyota called Yaris which, to US and Canadian Live members, will be absolutely free.
We're sure Puzzle Quest fans are already frothing at the mouth in anticipation for this Wednesday and already purchased their Microsoft points cards, but where the heck did this Toyota Yaris game come from? Total left field here, but a free corporate sponsored game and some free Gamerscore is something we won't question.
In a press release that was sent out yesterday, D3 Publisher announced (maybe somewhat prematurely) that Arcade game Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords would hitting the XBLA this Wednesday if "all goes well". The press release didn't mention any other specifics and we haven't heard anything from Microsoft yet, so things could change by the time Wednesday rolls around. But knowing publishers' batting averages as of late, we're confident in saying that come October 10th we'll paying 1200 Microsoft points to play Puzzle Quest on our Xbox 360. Anyone willing to take up our bet?
After reading through the somewhat uneventful Xbox Flash Fall email we thought nothing of it, until Magic Whiskey cued us in on the Arcade section. There, we noticed that the yet to be released XBLA game Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords is listed and at a whopping 1200 Microsoft points! We checked Xbox.com's Puzzle Quest listing to confirm the price tag, but lo and behold no date or pricing details are listed. So we just shrug and walk away learning two things from our Xbox Flash email. One being that Puzzle Quest should be releasing soon'ish, the other being that it's going to cost a bunch. A whole bunch.