XBLIG News, Reviews & Previews

Blox is a new twist on the old colour matching type games. In Blox, you must shoot the correct colour block across the screen to take out that colour. But be careful. There are new blocks falling all the time that might negate your colour.

The graphics here are simple, yet really make the game. On the left hand side of the screen, are the piles of blocks. On the right is your score and the a list of the A, B, Y, and X buttons. But the diagram really doesn’t help you in the game. I think it might be there just to take up space.

The sound is great as well. No cheesy music track to distract you during game play. Just a computerized voice and a couple of extra sounds when you shoot the blocks or destroy them.

All in all, this is strangely a very compelling game. I started playing it thinking that I would give it a quick try as it seemed simple enough. Next thing I knew, I had been playing for about 20 minutes. This one can really suck you in if you’re not careful. Another excellent game to add you your list of Indie’s that you already have. 5 thumbs up from me.

Aaah, the wonderful days of yesteryear when pinball was all the rage. Well, it can be again with the help of a wonderful new game called Avatar Pinball. This game can not only bring you the classic joys of pinball but takes it to a whole new level by making you the ball. There’s nothing better than watching your avatar get shot across the table like a ragdoll with a stupid grin on its face.

The graphics here are really very good if not a little distracting. You have the pinball table that the avatar must travel around. There’s a backdrop if you want to watch the scenery. The most distracting thing though is the big tv screen in the background. It shows a close-up of your avatar flopping around the table. You’ll be so busy laughing that it’s hard to keep the avatar from dropping down the hole.

The music is really good as well. It actually reminds me of a magician I saw once on the comedy channel. Sound effects are A1 here too.

The developer really put a lot of work into this game and it shows. This one is definitely a must have for all video game enthusiasts and should really win an award for making such a fun game. Honestly, I really couldn’t find one bad thing to say about this game. What’s that? There should be something bad about it? Alright, we need more tables and perhaps an online leaderboard would really add that extra something. Other than that, 5 thumbs up from me and a definite must buy for everyone.

BREEZE is a single player game written for the Xbox 360 and is light entertainment for persons of any age. Take control of a fan as you strive to gently blow a flower to the goal. Control the flower by proxy across the 60 levels using only the power of wind. Take the flower through all four seasons to reach the goal catching the sunny collectables as you go. Breeze comes with a chilled, lilting soundtrack and an emphasis on the smooth.

Breeze features 60 unique levels of flowery twitch play for you to enjoy. This game will have you itching to try and beat the levels which vary in difficulty from the very easy to the infuriatingly hard. There's plenty of content to explore with unique and interesting traps and game mechanics. Breeze has been designed to offer high replay value with each level having a record time set by the developer. Those who take on the challenge of beating these times will find Breeze a difficult and rewarding game to master.

Breeze is currently available on Xbox Live Indie Games Marketplace, priced at 240 MSP.

In a world where forests are dwindling, where do you turn for help? Why the forest animals, of course. In Stop the Woodcutter, you are charged with protecting the trees from the lumberjacks and miners by using animals to protect the area. You must spend points in order to get the animals you need to defend the forest. Each animal has a unique ability and you must try to use the best possible combination in order to stop the woodcutters.

The graphics in the game are fairly decent. The backdrop of paths and trees seem to be fairly standard but the animals and woodcutter graphics is where the developer really shone out.

The sound was alright in the game. Not a whole lot to go with here but passable.

This game was cute for a while but I found it a little slow. One of my major problems with this game was how difficult it was to build up points to get more creatures. Some of the earlier levels, I found, were a little too difficult with diverging paths and not enough points/options for adding defenses. However, that being said, I am still giving this game 3 out of 5 thumbs up because of the graphics that the developer put into the game. Now, go out and give this one a try or I’ll sic my squirrel on you.