SouthPeak Scores $12.9 Million In Funding, Plans More Two Worlds

VentureBeat reports today that publisher SouthPeak (I was just there yesterday seeing Ninjatown) has picked up $12.9 million in private investments. It's worth pointing out, as Dean Takahashi does in his story on the financing, that rarely do console and PC video game publishers pick up venture capital - most VC dollars these days are going to more nouveau-media stuff like online games, social networks, virtual worlds and so-called "Web 2.0."

SouthPeak's apparently betting big on Ninjatown, X-Blades, Edge of Twilight and the rest of its lineup, which will include follow-ups to Two Worlds, hoping for big hits. According to Takahashi, SouthPeak is hoping to ride Two Worlds, which it considers its biggest to-date success, to fiscal year revenues of $30 million.

The publisher just went public in April, through a semi-complicated "reverse merger" situation it recently went through in April with Global Services Acquisition Corp - the quick story on that deal is the merger let SouthPeak go public without an IPO.

SouthPeak Interactive raises $12.9 million for indie games [VentureBeat]

Russian Gaijins Go Anime-Style With X-Blades

I saw a couple of Southpeak's upcoming titles today, including one that I didn't even know existed, to be perfectly honest. A development team of Russian Japanophiles - get this, their name is Gaijin - set out to create the most anime-styled action title they could, and came up with X-Blades, headed for PC and next-gen consoles in the Fall.

Like anime style? Like cel-shaded 3D cutscenes? Like crazy outfits? This one could be for you, maybe.

Today, SouthPeak Games has unveiled X-Blades, an anime-inspired action adventure game that features a cute blond heroine using guns, swords and magic to battle her way through hordes of demonic enemies, developed by TopWare Interactive. Looking through the screenshots, I realized I had seen the game before as Oniblade from Russian company Gaijin Entertainment, which we posted a trailer for back in November. Due out in late 2008 for the PC, Xbox 360, and PS3, you can see more of the game either by waiting a week for the X-Blades website to launch or head over to the Oniblade website, already filled to the brim with screenshots and clips. Weird.