Announcements

Well, we posted the "rumor". Now the rumor is confirmed. (Go figure.)

Ubisoft confirmed to Eurogamer that Prince of Persia Classic is coming to Xbox Live Arcade next Wednesday, June 13th.

Wanna know more about the game, check out our previous coverage.

Now how much is it? (I assume 800 MS Points) And will it be sharing the spotlight with anything else (retro title release possibly)?

Here is the 2007 Pac-Man World Champion: Carlos Daniel Borrego Romero.

The big surprise during the tournament was that the 10 finalists would not compete against each other in classic Pac-Man. Stealing a page from The Wizard, Pac-Man Championship Edition was unveiled to the competitors the night before the final round. The question was: Who would quickly learn and excell in this new version?

The answer came in the answer of a dominating performance from Mr. Romero. Carlos crushed the others in the top four with a combined 459,330 points from two 5 minute championship mode rounds. The closest competition was the Austrian, Robert Glashuettner, with a mere 331,630. And so, the final was set between Mexico and Austria.

With Larry Hyrb (Major Nelson) and Aaron Greenberg (BIGVIP) doing commentary, the finals began. Robert came on fast in the final and got out to an early lead. Carlos seemed to struggle early but in classic commentator fashion Aaron proclaimed, "Don't worry. He finishes stong." And the tables began to turn. Robert continued to do well but Carlos simply kicked it into a higher gear and through the last minute pushed way out in front.

By now, I am sure all of you have heard the news that tomorrow's XBLA release is Pac-Man: Championship Edition.

Many of you are likely intrigued, some of you might be puzzled by the hype, and some are probably downright disgusted by certain Microsoft employees that blew the hype out of proportion.

But let me say this: the game is fun.

For me personally, this update to the basic Pac-Man premise is both welcome and exciting. I was never very good at the original Pac-Man, and I did not want to spend the time necessary to become good enough to enjoy it more. It was always an old-school hardcore arcade game from my perspective. But this new addition adds a furious pace (even near the start), short 5-10 minute games, and fluid gameplay (no more level loading screens) to the game that was the most successful arcade cabinet ever.

As a result of the changes, I feel like the game is more casual friendly (a big plus for people like me) and yet I already spy the intricacies and depth of the new modes peeking out at me.

Yes, the could have added multiplayer. Yes, the mazes could have been made more dense (although some of the new mazes and modes will freak you out). There are a lot of other things that could have been done to change Pac-Man. But ultimately, Iwatani, as his swan song at Namco Bandai, brought his career full-circle with a return to his lasting legacy -- Pac-Man. And with this re-imagining of his classic for a new fast-paced age of worldwide connectivity, he has moved the battle for the ultimate Pac-Man high score from Chucky Cheese to a worldwide leaderboard.

Let the games begin!

I will be covering the Pac-Man world championships tomorrow today in NYC (it's where I live after all) so look out for the upcoming coverage. Of immediate interest is hype surrounding a secret announcement that will be made at the press conference before the competition.

Aaron Greenberg of Microsoft has been quoted as saying:

"We have a secret unveil for gamers around the world that I think will go down in video game history."

Hide the kids, because we all know how the fanboys react to a boatload of hype like that. Let's just hope it's not a total riot letdown. We should get the word by 1:30PM Eastern tomorrow, so stay tuned to XBLArcade.com.

[via Game|Life, Gamertag Radio, and our secret XBLArcade.com connections, Thanks Measure]

Looks like Hudson has more than just Bomberman Live! up their collective sleeves. Xbox Gazette broke a story (in French) on the upcoming Natsume (you know, the Harvest Moon devs) developed, Hudson published Omega Five.

There are a bunch of images of the game at the site so check 'em out. It seems to be a side-scrolling 2D style shooter but with 3D elements. Machine translation of the page is pretty rough, but apparently the hook of the game will be enemies emerging from the 3D background and not just from the top and bottom of the screen like most side-scrolling shooters.

Based on the images available it looks like the game is close to completion but we never can tell. (I said the same thing about Mutant Storm Empire six months ago...) The article states it will likely cost 800 MS Points.

[via Xbox Gazette]

Many people have been experiencing a frustrating upgrade glitch in Mad Tracks. Users have been reporting that after downloading the trial version of Mad Tracks and then subsequently paying to upgrade to the full version they have still been stuck with the trial version.

Luckily, Load Inc put their crack team on it and they have submitted a patch to Microsoft for approval. To all those affected, may the relief come swiftly.

[via Kotaku]

"Because you demanded it! Bomberman has gone LIVE!"

Not a bad way for Hudson Entertainment to begin their Bomberman Live page. After the sour reception for Bomberman: Act Zero (I reserve complete judgment on that game as I've never played it myself) I am glad to see Hudson listening to the public outcry.

Give us classic Bomberman over Live, we said. Done, they said.

Give us local multiplayer too, we said. Done.

Give us more customizable outfits...uh, well someone must've said that. And Hudson said, done.

And with that everyone shook hands and parted ways with a new bounce in their steps. But, if knowing the story so far only leaves you wanting more, check out the site for all the latest and greatest updates. And make sure to check back "each week" for new info on the upcoming bomb-fest.

[Thanks, Wille Riche]