Arcade, Arcade, Arcade.

Well my ladies and germs, I have recently delved into the Arcade downloads area of the marketplace and I have some good news.

I made 3 purchases this week, and each has been delightfully satisfying in a unique way.

1-Castlevania: Symphony of the Night -

This is an obvious classic and many of you probably played this game back in the day on PS1. I only played parts of this masterpiece when I was younger, so I had no choice but to download it now to finish the dri...story. Just like the old days, it didn't disappoint (Which I was worried about since it is now on the 360 and might have lost some of that old-school feel, but I am happily rolling through it.) No real shocker here, just worthy of mention.

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The next two games aren't popular ones and hopefully I can open the metaphorical gaming window to allow in some fresh air for you sweaty, mouth-breathing bozos. Note that I don't say that to sound like some indie fuckbag that will casually move his/her jet-black hair from their eyes and mumble, "yeah, you probably haven't heard of them..." Instead, I say this because I was trying to find games that were unique and more "out there." Mission accomplished on the next two.

2- Greed Corp

This game is delicious, and I hope people start to buy it since the online community seems to be small. Greed Corp looks like Settlers of Catan, but plays like Stratego, risk, chess, checkers, etc. This isn't a game you can immediately download and jump right into, but with about 5-10 minutes to learn the physics and the game play, it is a delight. Instead of trying to explain more about the game, go grab the trial version (which is pleasantly expansive), and get hooked like I was.


Is this how you feel right now?


A brief final pitch as well: The music is scrumptious in this game. The style is certainly from quite a while ago, but if you like music such as this you will not be disappointed.

3-I MAED A GAM3 W1TH ZOMBIES 1N IT!!!1

I meandered into the "Indie" section of the Arcade, and found this hilarious game. Unfortunately, it lacks online multiplayer (which saddens me), but it does have 1-4 on split screen... so not completely a let down. Anyhow, the title essentially explains the game as well as anything else will. There is a game, and there are most assuredly zombies in it. You only seem to use the two directional sticks to play this game, but it is funny as hell and very enjoyable.


The gameplay, like previously mentioned, is simple yet great. You snake your way around the battlefield and shoot the hell out of zombies. Different gun options occasionally appear or are dropped from enemies, but the game holds the same basic premise: kill. Hordes of these flesh seeking baddies pop up, and your goal is to mow them down. All the while, awesome music is roaring over your speakers, making you happy in all the wrong places.



The game is a dollar, and is well worth it. Now go out and blasts some zom-bays. Quick note- If you have epilepsy, this game is certainly not for you. Enjoy.


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Dawn of War 2: Chaos Rising

I am willing to bet not many of you are that familiar with the Dawn of War games that started back in 2004 on PC. With that in mind, the original Dawn of War didn't seem to be as popular as I thought it deserved to be, but it didn't cause Relic and friends to stop producing expansions. In 2005, the first expansion was released which helped popularize the game a bit due to the low cost as well as the ability to play alongside all of the other previous owners as only one of 5 available races. A year later in 2006, a second expansion was released that added two more races to the mix. At this point, most RTS fans would be extremely happy with the diversity offered by these games... but the game didn't seem to gain any popularity. In 2008, I was shocked to see yet another expansion released, that added two more races bringing the grand total to 9. Again, RTS fans typically love a large variety of races/factions and units to choose from when playing games, and this seemed to be perfect.



Yet unfortunately, the game really never hit huge heights like any of the Blizzard or Westwood/EA games. Yet this game had pretty much everything you look for in a real time strat: a cool, squad based combat system, variety of gametypes that are entertaining, huge array of races/factions/units, and an above decent online system.

I bring all of this up, because about a week ago Dawn of War 2 released its first expansion, Dawn of War 2: Chaos Rising. I haven't been playing tons of RTS games lately, but I downloaded it from steam to occupy some time. Granted, I am a fanboy from the older games and also the sequel Dawn of War 2; but this expansion is pretty great. If you had any chance to play DoW2 and enjoyed it, this game is more of the same with new units and a new faction. Another gametype has been thrown into the mix, that resembles the custom games called "Enfos" from Warcraft 3 TFT. (Also, the online system is vastly improved.)



So I guess this rambling all culminates to: If you like RTS games that revolve around squad based missions and fighting, you will probably enjoy this game. At the minimum, you will laugh at the voice actors when clicking on the different characters and having them all interact. If your computer has a nice graphics card, this game can be pretty stunning as well. You can also buy the original game and the expansion for 40$. Worth it, in my opinion.

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