Kotaku: switchball

Xbox Live Arcade Gets TiQal Ish This Week

Michael McWhertor — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 15:00:46 MDT

Is this the week of Ikaruga for Xbox Live Arcade? Hell no! It's TiQal's time to shine. This Wednesday, the Slapdash Games created puzzler hits XBLA, bringing color-matching, block-clearing gameplay with a Mayan theme to the masses. It's 800 Microsoft Points and is "sure to delight fans of the puzzle game genre" according to the press release. I have strong faith in press releases and haven't been lied to by one yet.

This Wednesday also brings with it an update to Switchball, promising improved graphics and buttery smooth gameplay. Okay, great, now make with the Ikaruga already.

This Week's XBLA Releases Are Puzzling, In A Good Way

Mark Wilson — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 12:40:42 MST

This Wednesday, look for new releases Switchball and Word Puzzle on Xbox Live Arcade. While we don't know much about word-search-with-bombs title Word Puzzle, we really enjoyed our time with Switchball way back at E3. So for any marble game fiends, it's a promising download. Both games run 800 points (lesser known as $10).

On a side note, wouldn't a marble fiend fan group be fantastic? We could arrange lectures, readings and dicussions...all about marbles and their many incarnations in not-so-popular culture. Not interested? What if we tempt you with some matching embroidered polos? Yeah, thought so.

Xbox Live Arcade gets a double dose of puzzles [siliconera]

Mutant Storm Empire Your XBLA Halloween Treat

Michael McWhertor — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 17:40:05 MDT

If the thought of another arcade-style shooter coming to the digital distribution network of your choice hasn't set your eyes to rolling, you may be thrilled to learn that Mutant Storm Empire, the sequel to Mutant Storm Reloaded, is this week's Xbox Live Arcade game. It hits Xbox 360s on Halloween, leaning more toward sci-fi than this week's horrific Virtual Console update. It's 800 Microsoft Points, features online co-op and hits at 9 AM GMT.

Microsoft also gives us a look at what's on deck for XBLA in "the coming weeks", including N+, Switchball and Undertow. More information at the official media alert.

Get Your Freak On With Xbox LIVE Arcade This Week [Gamerscore Blog]

Hands-On Switchball (XBLA)

Mark Wilson — Sun, 15 Jul 2007 13:57:01 MDT

I sat down with the head producer. He's wearing a knit vest depicting a landscape while he walks me through the features of Switchball, a promising XBLA title that crosses Marble Blast with The Incredible Machine.

I look again at that vest and wonder if he paints watercolors on the side.

We've seen the idea before: you're a ball that has to make it from one end of the map to another. But this iteration keeps it fresh with excellent physics. Things just "felt right," and I was really impressed when the ball rolled off a wooden platform onto a stretched blanket. The cloth gives the perfect amount—there is a ton of polish here. A well-built camera system seals the deal, trailing right behind the ball or rotating a wider image with ease.

Different ball types like a helium ball (that can be affected by wind) and a power ball (that glows dynamically while smashing through heavy objects in your way). Note: That's where we think they got the name Switchball.

Levels are Rube Goldberg inspired, with mousetrap type chutes and slides. But it's just a bit too high on the taste scale for us. We'd love to see everything zanified to the max within the conservative, oak wood framework.

I mean, it's not going to change the world or anything, but Switchball is just the sort of tight, pick up and play title that's good on the XBLA platform.