Farewell THQ and Atari US, parting is such sweet sorrow. As these two former giants of the game developing world slip into the eternal night, what will happen to their downloadable games? If XBLA is any indication; some games will be pulled, some reduced and some not touched at all! Voltron has been delisted, Yar's Revenge and The Undergarden have been reduced, whilst Warhammer 40K: Kill Team remains untouched. Confused? You will be.
It really didn't take long for the co-op puzzle adventure game The UnderGarden to appear on the Xbox LIVE Arcade price drop list. Not to say it's a bad game on closeout, just that you can get a decent co-op game at a reduced price.
The UnderGarden is a nice casual game for your inner stoner child. You play as a little imp who floats through caves while pollinating the plant life. Vibrant flowers blossom as you pass by, little tiny musicians play soothing melodies. There aren't any enemies to speak of. We gave the two player local co-op title a score of 3 out of 5 in our Co-Op Review. If you have mastered the Undergarden and find yourself wanting more, we have good news for you. Two new levels are available for download on the Xbox Live Market Place. They will cost you 160 Microsoft Points, or two bucks.
Vitamin G Studios' unique puzzler, the UnderGarden, is scheduled to be released this winter on PSN. In our review, we felt the game had real potential but fell a little short in the co-op department (in co-op mode, the game focuses on Player 1 with Player 2 mostly being along for the ride). Despite some shortcomings, however, the game still has a great art style and relaxing feel which can appeal to all different sorts of gamers. No word yet on a specific date of release for the PSN version, but it sounds like it may be sometime in February.
Microsoft is kicking off a countdown to New Years by discounting several titles from now until the end of the year. In addition, each day a new set of content will be discounted for one day only. So what's in store for today, December 21st:
Tired of shoot'em ups? Do explosions just not have the same 'pop' they used to? The UnderGarden wants to stimulate your inner flower child with peaceful sights and sounds in this laid back puzzle/platformer. See if it's a Zen experience or just a zero in our review.
The casual gamer is becoming a major factor in the videogame industry. The makers of Farmville are worth more than EA. Popcap games are invading consoles, from Peggle to Plants vs. Zombies. Atari's latest game, The Undergarden, is vigorously promoted as a "casual, Zen-like" experience, perhaps in an attempt to appeal to the Farmville loving social gamer.
