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<generator>Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/</generator><item><title>Best of the Rest: Alexander's Picks of 2007</title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2008/01/01/best-of-the-rest-alexanders-picks-of-2007/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2008/01/01/best-of-the-rest-alexanders-picks-of-2007/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2008/01/01/best-of-the-rest-alexanders-picks-of-2007/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/ds/" rel="tag">Nintendo DS</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/features/" rel="tag">Features</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/pc/" rel="tag">PC</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/ps3/" rel="tag">Sony PlayStation 3</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/psp/" rel="tag">Sony PSP</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/xbox360/" rel="tag">Microsoft Xbox 360</a></p><div align="center"><img width="490" vspace="4" hspace="0" height="273" border="1" align="top" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/12/civivbeyondthesword.jpg" alt="" /><br /></div>
<strong><em>Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword</em></strong> (PC)<br /><br />Please, make the addiction stop! <em>Civilization IV: Warlords</em>, the first expansion for <span style="font-style: italic;">Civ IV,</span> made my "<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/01/01/best-of-the-rest-alexanders-picks/">Best of the Rest</a>" last year and <em>Beyond the Sword</em> tops this year's list. The funny thing is I'm not a <span style="font-style: italic;">Civ</span> fanboy, nor am I even that great of a player (<span style="font-style: italic;">Full Disclosure</span>: I still play on Noble level), but <span style="font-style: italic;">Civ IV</span> is a game I can come back to over and over again. <span style="font-style: italic;">Beyond the Sword</span> added much-needed mechanics for culture-prone and passive-aggressive players, with enhancements in espionage and other concepts "beyond the sword." Oh, and just to keep last year's tradition going: Firaxis (2K, Take-Two), <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/07/12/firaxis-wouldnt-be-against-alpha-centauri-ii/">please get the rights to <em>Alpha Centauri</em></a> back from EA and give us a sequel!<div style="text-align: center;"><br /><br /><img vspace="4" hspace="0" border="1" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/12/overlordmain.jpg" /><br /></div>
<strong><em>Overlord</em></strong> (Xbox 360, PC)<br /><br />Is it worth $60? Absolutely not. But if you can find it for $30 or less, <span style="font-style: italic;">Overlord</span> is an overlooked semi-precious gem. The game can be glitchy and has clear design issues, but you can see the vision Triumph Studios had in development, and for the most part the studio accomplished its goals. <span style="font-style: italic;">Overlord</span> is a game that would benefit from a very direct sequel using everything created for the first game and just adding new levels with more polish in concept and execution.<br /><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><img vspace="4" hspace="0" border="1" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/12/crackdown-main.jpg" /><br /></div>
<span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Crackdown</span> (Xbox 360)<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">The Halo Beta</span> didn't interest me so I just didn't pay much attention to <span style="font-style: italic;">Crackdown</span>. About a month after <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/13/halo-3-beta-by-the-numbers/"><span style="font-style: italic;">The Halo Beta</span></a> was over I finally got around to playing <span style="font-style: italic;">Crackdown</span> -- and it was awesome. Sure, the narrator spouted lines randomly for no apparent reason, but the game itself was great summer fun. Just like <span style="font-style: italic;">Overlord</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">Crackdown</span> would benefit from a sequel -- sadly, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/09/07/no-crackdown-sequel-in-development/">we may have to wait a while</a>.<br /><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><img vspace="4" hspace="0" border="1" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/12/puzzlequestmain.jpg" /><br /></div>
<span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"> Puzzle Quest </span>(Every system under the sun)<br /><br />As <span style="font-style: italic;">Peggle</span> is to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plinko"><span style="font-style: italic;">Plinko</span></a>, <span style="font-style: italic;">Puzzle Quest</span> is to <span style="font-style: italic;">Bejeweled</span>. Finding just the right mix of RPG and addictive puzzle action, <span style="font-style: italic;">Puzzle Quest</span>'s missions and ancillary elements create an experience that every person should own on their handheld for trips -- or on a console for 10-minute breaks. The real question: Is <span style="font-style: italic;">Puzzle Quest</span> the beginning of the casual game hybrids, or is it just an anomaly?<br /><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><img vspace="4" hspace="0" border="1" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/12/catanmain.jpg" /><br /></div>
<span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Carcassonne</span> and <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Catan</span> (Xbox 360)<br /><br />Want MOAR! High-quality video game versions of excellent European board games are, well, excellent.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><img vspace="4" hspace="0" border="1" align="middle" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/12/honorable-mention.jpg" /><br /></div>
<span style="font-weight: bold;">Honorable Mention<br /><br /></span>Winks to <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">The Darkness</span> (Xbox 360, PS3), <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Ratchet and Clank Future: Tools of Destruction</span> (PS3), <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Lost Planet</span> (Xbox 360, PC).<br /><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><img width="490" vspace="4" hspace="0" height="111" border="1" align="middle" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/12/dissapointment07.jpg" /><br /></div>
<span style="font-weight: bold;">Disappointment:</span><br />
<ul>
    <li><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Heavenly Sword</span> (PS3): Somewhere under this movie there was a game. <span style="font-style: italic;">Goddess of War</span> this is not ... more like <span style="font-style: italic;">Heavenly Rental</span>.<br /></li>
    <li><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Eternal Sonata</span> (Xbox 360): Chopin can take his existential emo-whining and shove it. A fun battle system was met with a game where the developers got lazy halfway through and allowed the writers to commit intellectual self-fornication.<br /></li>
    <li><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Project Sylpheed</span> (Xbox 360): Those of us waiting for the successor to <span style="font-style: italic;">Wing Commander</span> are going to have to keep waiting.</li>
</ul>
<span style="font-weight: bold;">New Year's Resolutions:<br /><br /></span>Playing the many, <span style="font-style: italic;">many</span> releases from late October through the end of the year.<p style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"> </p><p><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2008/01/01/best-of-the-rest-alexanders-picks-of-2007/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/1069154/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2008/01/01/best-of-the-rest-alexanders-picks-of-2007/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>]]></description><category>Best-of-the-rest-2007</category><category>carcassonne</category><category>catan</category><category>civ4</category><category>civilization</category><category>civilizationiv</category><category>civIV</category><category>crackdown</category><category>eternal-sonata</category><category>eternalsonata</category><category>GOTY-2007</category><category>heavenly-sword</category><category>heavenlysword</category><category>overlord</category><category>projectsylpheed</category><category>puzzle-quest</category><category>puzzlequest</category><category>ratchet-and-clank</category><category>ratchetandclank</category><category>the-darkness</category><category>thedarkness</category><dc:creator>Alexander Sliwinski</dc:creator><dc:date>2008-01-01T22:30:00+00:00</dc:date></item><item><title>Best of the Rest: Ross' Picks of 2007</title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2008/01/01/best-of-the-rest-ross-picks-of-2007/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2008/01/01/best-of-the-rest-ross-picks-of-2007/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2008/01/01/best-of-the-rest-ross-picks-of-2007/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/features/" rel="tag">Features</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/pc/" rel="tag">PC</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/ps3/" rel="tag">Sony PlayStation 3</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/wii/" rel="tag">Nintendo Wii</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/xbox360/" rel="tag">Microsoft Xbox 360</a></p><div align="center"><img vspace="4" hspace="0" border="0" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/12/team-fortress-2-pa-490.jpg" alt="" /></div>
<strong><span style="font-style: italic;">Team Fortress 2</span> </strong>(Xbox 360, PC, PlayStation 3)<strong><br /></strong><br />While <em>Portal </em>is being given its much deserved credit for the year, and <em>Half-Life 2</em> has enjoyed years of acclaim, let's not forget about the other pillar of Valve's <em>The Orange Box. </em>It's been <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Team_Fortress_2#Development">eight years</a> since the release of <em>Team Fortress Classic</em>, and the game has undergone so many revisions and delays we half expected it to be released alongside <em>Duke Nukem Forever</em> sometime <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012#Metaphysical_predictions">in 2012</a>. As it turned out, the game not only saw the light of day but ended up being an addictive online experience. <br /><br />As a console gamer enjoying this with a gamepad, I don't care much much for the sniper, soldier, demoman, or anything except medic and occasionally the engineer. There's something brutally satisfying about charging into battle behind a heavy weapons guy, dodging the occasional bullet (people <a href="http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2007/09/21">still haven't learned</a>) and injecting him with a team-killing jolt of invincibility. Hours of enjoyment and not a single bullet shot. Pure. Enjoyment.<br /><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><img vspace="4" hspace="0" border="1" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/12/carc-eoty-490.jpg" alt="" /></div>
<strong><span style="font-style: italic;">Carcassonne</span> </strong>(Xbox Live Arcade)<strong><br /> <br /> </strong>One of my favorite articles from Scott's <em>Off the Grid</em> columns has always been <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2006/11/09/off-the-grid-carcassonne-review/">his review of </a><em><a href="javascript:void(0);/*1198716982291*/">Carcassonne</a>. </em>Of course, I never cared go to the actual lengths of finding the game or friends who were willing to sit down with me and play it. So, when the Xbox Live version was announced, I waited for that. And it was worth the wait, with the exception of the cringe-inducing background music.<br /> <strong><br /></strong>
<div style="text-align: center;"><img vspace="4" hspace="0" border="1" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/12/sin-punishment-eoty-490.jpg" alt="" /><br /></div>
<strong> <span style="font-style: italic;">Sin and Punishment</span> </strong>(Nintendo Wii)<strong><br /> <br /> </strong>Sure, it was technically released on Nintendo 64 in 2000, but this Treasure, erm, treasure has only this year been translated and officially released in North America <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/01/sin-and-punishment-and-smb-lost-levels-on-virtual-console/">via a Virtual Console download</a>. The characters are extremely androgynous (short shorts but with very manly grunts? Really?) and the music is inappropriately upbeat given the over-the-top dramatic storyline. Of course, all this adds to the atmosphere, and this on-the-rails shooter is incredibly fun. Be the first kid on your block to <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/11/22/sin-and-punishments-saki-cameos-in-smash-bros-brawl/">recognize Saki</a> in next year's <em>Smash Bros. Brawl.</em><br /> <br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><img vspace="4" hspace="0" border="1" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/12/flow-eoty-490.jpg" alt="" /></div>
<strong><span style="font-style: italic;">flOw</span> </strong>(PlayStation 3)<strong><br /> </strong><br /> This game is personal for many reasons: one of my first, and still favorite, interviews I've done with Joystiq (and consequently my entire career covering the games industry) was <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2006/09/18/joystiq-qanda-jenova-chen/">talking to <em>flOw creator</em> Jenova Chen</a> in September 2006. Although still available as a free flash game created as his Masters' thesis, Chen's PlayStation 3 version displayed on 1080p television is quite the soothing experience. The game is still one of my favorite examples of using the Sixaxis controls, and the <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/18/warhawk-fl0w-expanding-in-december/">recent expansion</a> got me caught up with the game yet again.<br /><br />My favorite pastime of 2007: trying to explain what the point of <span style="font-style: italic;">flOw</span> is. I predict my favorite pastime of 2008 will be trying to explain to myself <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/11/29/flow-dev-discusses-blossoming-new-project/">what <span style="font-style: italic;">flOwer</span> is</a>.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><br /><img vspace="4" hspace="0" border="1" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/12/hd-menu-and-freerice.jpg" alt="" /></div>
<strong>Honorable Mentions<br /><br /></strong>The following items were even harder to justify as "games," but I still managed to thoroughly enjoy:<strong><br /> </strong>
<ul>
    <li>HD Movie Menu Screens - Compelled by my love for the show <span style="font-style: italic;">Heroes</span> and Best Buy's crazy awesome deal, I picked up the Xbox 360 HD-DVD player. Sure, I could just watch the show normally, but now you can go through menus and the video will just keep on playing. Even more exciting, when you switch in and out of the menu, the entire screen shrinks dynamically. I'm not ashamed to admit this was a thoroughly satisfying experience that I replayed over and over again until someone slapped the controller out of my hand.<br /></li>
    <li><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://freerice.com/">FreeRice</a> - I didn't want to label this a game, per se, because essentially it's just a multiple choice game. However, by merit of having a steep difficulty curve, an unforgiving level system (you drop one level for every wrong answer and only raise a level by answering three correct in a row) and being <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/11/07/satiate-intercontinental-voracity-with-online-vocabulary-game/">linguistic-centric</a>, I couldn't resist playing this obsessively for the last couple of months. <br /></li>
</ul>
<div style="text-align: center;"><img vspace="4" hspace="0" border="1" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/12/ross-diss-eoty-490.jpg" alt="" /><br /></div>
<strong>Disappointments<br /> </strong>
<ul>
    <li><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/07/16/joystiq-hands-on-my-word-coach-wii-ds/"><span style="font-style: italic;">My Word Coach</span></a> - Make no mistake, I like <span style="font-style: italic;">My Word Coach</span>. I think it's a fun game, but I wanted it to be amazing. After last year's <span style="font-style: italic;">Bookworm Adventures </span>and <span style="font-style: italic;">Brain Age</span>, I was looking for another outlet for feed my inner-English nerd. Unfortunately, I only found a few of the game modes (Word Shuffle, Split Decision, Missing Letter and perhaps Block Letters) engaging. Also, after a month of playing almost daily - that's approximately 1200 successful words - I only saw a handful of vocables that even challenged me. Maybe it gets more challenging after you unlock the harder difficulty levels, but that's taking way too much effort and I just assume get my diction-fix playing <span style="font-style: italic;">FreeRice</span>.<br /></li>
    <li style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.ps3fanboy.com/2007/09/18/lair-dev-critical-of-warhawks-motion-controls/">Lair</a> - Uh, yeah.<br /></li>
    <li><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/tag/littlebigplanet"><span style="font-style: italic;">LittleBigPlanet's</span></a> absence - Ever since my playtime E3 - no, ever since the initial unveiling at GDC - we have been clamoring to get our hands on the title in the confines of our own homes. A demo was supposed to come this year, and <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/12/11/littlebigplanet-demo-not-coming-this-year/">it never showed</a>. I cried.</li>
</ul><p style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"> </p><p><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2008/01/01/best-of-the-rest-ross-picks-of-2007/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/1070332/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2008/01/01/best-of-the-rest-ross-picks-of-2007/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>]]></description><category>Best-of-the-rest-2007</category><category>Carcassonne</category><category>fl0w</category><category>FreeRice</category><category>GOTY-2007</category><category>Lair</category><category>LittleBigPlanet</category><category>My-Word-Coach</category><category>Sin-and-punishment</category><category>Team-Fortress-2</category><category>TF2</category><category>VC</category><dc:creator>Ross Miller</dc:creator><dc:date>2008-01-01T20:30:00+00:00</dc:date></item><item><title>Off the Grid: Long-distance gaming</title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2007/12/27/off-the-grid-long-distance-gaming/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2007/12/27/off-the-grid-long-distance-gaming/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2007/12/27/off-the-grid-long-distance-gaming/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/features/" rel="tag">Features</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/pc/" rel="tag">PC</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/xbox360/" rel="tag">Microsoft Xbox 360</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/online/" rel="tag">Online</a></p><div align="center"><font color="#808080"><span style="font-style: italic;"><img vspace="4" hspace="0" border="1" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/12/otg_catanliveonline.jpg" /></span></font><br /><font color="#808080"><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></font></div>
<font color="#808080"><span style="font-style: italic;">Every other week Scott Jon Siegel contributes </span><a href="http://joystiq.com/tag/offthegrid/">Off the Grid</a><span style="font-style: italic;">, a column about card games, board games, and everything else non-digital.</span></font><br /><br />"<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2006/10/12/digital-killed-the-analog-star/">Non-digital games are awesome</a>" is the line I usually insist upon in this column. But even awesome analog games have their faults: namely, if you don't have anyone to play with, you can't really play.<br /><br />So, as an end-of-year treat, let's look back at the last year+ of games reviewed, and find some ways to play those suckers against some internet folk:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/02/22/off-the-grid-interviews-brian-reynolds-of-big-huge-games/"><em><strong>Settlers of Catan</strong></em></a><br />I still haven't gotten around to reviewing <em>Settlers</em>, but I did chat with Brian Reynolds about the <a href="http://www.catanlive.com/">Xbox Live Arcade version of the game</a>, which is probably the best bet for consistent, high-volume net play.<br /><br />For those who don't have an Xbox 360 (like, well, <em>me</em>), Aso Brain Games hosts an <a href="http://games.asobrain.com/">unofficial, Java-based version of the game</a> called <em>Xplorers</em>. After a free registration, the site allows users to player ranked and un-ranked versions against other users and bots, and features a number of expansion and additions to the base rules, which can be toggled on or off. Don't let the low-fi look of the site dissuade you; <em>Xplorers</em> is a well-put-together <em>Settlers</em> clone, with a solid interface and a consistent number of users online at any time.<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2006/11/09/off-the-grid-carcassonne-review/"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></span></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2006/11/09/off-the-grid-carcassonne-review/"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" align="right" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/12/otg_carcassonnexblatoulouse.jpg" /></span></span></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2006/11/09/off-the-grid-carcassonne-review/"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Carcassonne</span></span></a><br />As with <span style="font-style: italic;">Settlers of Catan</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">Carcassonne</span> was blessed this year with its own multiplayer-friendly<span style="font-weight: bold;"> Xbox Live Arcade adaptation</span>, handled by Sierra Online. Again, great news for 360 owners; irrelevant news for everyone else.<br /><br />Luckily, Aso Brain Games comes to the rescue once more with a <span style="font-style: italic;">Carcassonne </span>clone, <a href="http://games.asobrain.com/ ">cleverly titled <span style="font-style: italic;">Toulouse</span></a>. Ranked and un-ranked matches apply here as well, and players are able to toggle on and off <span style="font-style: italic;">Carcassonne</span>'s two expansions. Though simplified, the game retains the charm of its predecessor, and the interface creates practically no hurdles for fans of the non-digital edition to leap into the realm of the online; the only rule not made readily apparent is right-clicking on your tile to rotate it, but I suppose you know now, don't you?<br /><br /><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/04/05/off-the-grid-reviews-roborally/"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">RoboRally</span></span></a><br />Alas, if only it were so easy with Richard Garfield's <span style="font-style: italic;">RoboRally</span>. A <a href="http://www.wizards.com/avalonhill/robo_demo/robodemo.asp">short demo</a> on the Wizards of the Coast site teases at the potential for a digital, multiplayer version, but the best attempts out there still leave much to be desired.<br /><br />EyePlay Games offers <a href="http://www.eyeplaygames.com/"><span style="font-style: italic;">Robo Runner</span></a>, which appears to be largely based on <span style="font-style: italic;">RoboRally</span>, although the game runs poorly on the site, and players must complete several "objective" missions before being allowed to play against other users.<br /><br />The other option, <a href="http://botsnscouts.sourceforge.net/"><span style="font-style: italic;">Bots 'N' Scouts</span></a>, plays in a downloadable Java applet (compatible with Mac, Windows, and Linux), but is plagued with glitches and suffers from poor interface design. Since neither of these really satisfy our desire for true online <span style="font-style: italic;">RoboRally</span> mayhem, we'll keep on wishing for an XBLA adaptation (pretty please, Microsoft?).<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/07/16/off-the-grid-interviews-cheapass-games-james-ernest/"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" align="right" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/12/otg_killdoctorluckyonline.jpg" />Kill Doctor Lucky</a><br /></span></span>No, I never reviewed this classic Cheapass board game, although it's definitely one of my all-time favorite non-digital titles. Cheapass Games has a deal with GameTableOnline, who host the <a href="http://www.gametableonline.com/gameinfo.php?gid=13">only official online version</a> of the murderous board game about the luckiest man alive. Registration on the site comes with two weeks of free gaming, although further playing requires paid-up membership, which comes in monthly, quarterly, or yearly plans.<br /><br />The Java applet in which all of GTO's offerings run is a bit sloppy, with a lot of security certificates to click off on before starting an actual game. The interface is a tad confusing, but it is relieving to have all the Doctor Lucky movement managing fall on the very capable hands of the computer. For those who are friend-less, GTO also offers bots for solo play, although <span style="font-style: italic;">Kill Doctor Lucky</span> is never as much fun as when you're playing with buddies.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/11/29/off-the-grid-reviews-ticket-to-ride/"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" align="right" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/12/otg_tickettorideonline.jpg" />Ticket to Ride</span></span></a><br />One of our most recent reviews also happens to have one of the best online versions to offer, with Days of Wonder hosting the <a href="http://www.ticket2ridegame.com">official <span style="font-style: italic;">Ticket to Ride</span> web game</a>. Using a special code printed on the instruction manual of the board game, purchasers can access the web version, which features a bustling community of human opponents, as well as bots for the shyer folk. Unlike other web versions, the interface is extremely clean, retaining the look and feel of the non-digital version, while keeping it playable and, most importantly, fun. <br /><br />A <a href="https://www.daysofwonder.com/en/buy/?family=TS">disc-based version of the game</a> is also available for PCs and Macs (also including online play), and both the web and disc-based versions feature several of the game's popular expansions and maps.<br /><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/04/19/off-the-grid-reviews-fluxx/"><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="0" align="right" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/12/otg_fluxxonline.jpg" />Fluxx</span></span></a><br />Love it or hate it, <span style="font-style: italic;">Fluxx</span> (and its <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/11/15/off-the-grid-reviews-zombie-fluxx/">newborn Zombie brother</a>) is here to stay. Looney Labs has arranged to bring to the internet masses through Volity, which offers an <a href="http://volity.net/games/gamefinder/ruleset.html?uri=http://volity.org/games/fluxx/3_1">online, multiplayer version</a> of the ever-changing card game. Players download the Mac-and-PC-compatible Gamut application, and are ready for solo or multiplayer <span style="font-style: italic;">Fluxx<span style="font-style: italic;"> </span></span>action. The online version keeps the loose and colorful style of the original, but sacrifices usability in its compact, oft-confusing interface. It's hard to keep track of other player's actions, and the game doesn't make it clear enough what actions the player is supposed to be performing at any time. We'll take the non-digital version over this any day. Sorry, Volity.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/07/30/off-the-grid-plays-with-icehouse/"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Treehouse</span></span></a><br />When we looked at Looney Labs' unique suite of Icehouse games, we were a bit confused as to how to play some of them. If Volity's version of <span style="font-style: italic;">Treehouse</span> clears up one thing, it's that these games were meant to be played with the Icehouse pieces, and not with digital versions of them. Sorry, Volity. Again.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/01/off-the-grid-reviews-give-me-the-brain/"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" align="right" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/12/otg_lordoffriesonline.jpg" alt="" /></span></span></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/01/off-the-grid-reviews-give-me-the-brain/"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Give Me the Brain!</span></span></a><br />Sadly, there is no online version of this ever-so-excellent card game, although there is one for its more popular sequel, <a href="http://www.gametableonline.com/gameinfo.php?gid=3"><span style="font-style: italic;">Lord of the Fries</span></a>. GameTableOnline also hosts this fast-food-themed card game, which builds upon the brain-dead fun of James Ernest's original. <br /><br />With a less hectic interface than <span style="font-style: italic;">Kill Doctor Lucky</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">Lord of the Fries</span> makes the transition to digital a bit more gracefully.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/01/18/off-the-grid-scrabble-and-the-elusive-letter-q/"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="0" align="right" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/12/otg_scrabbleonline.jpg" alt="" />Scrabble</span></span></a><br />Bonnie Ruberg of <a href="http://heroine-sheik.com">Heroine Sheik</a> filled in a guest-spot for Off the Grid, and extolled the virtues of this classic word game. So, where on the internet can one find the best version of <span style="font-style: italic;">Scrabble</span>? Why, on Facebook of course! If you haven't already caught the fever, <a href="http://apps.facebook.com/scrabulous/"><span style="font-style: italic;">Scrabulous</span></a> is one of the hottest apps on the social networking site, and pulls the feat off quite gracefully with its casual, take-your-time approach to the title. Though I disagree with her opinion somewhat, Bonnie does a <a href="http://www.heroine-sheik.com/2007/11/27/not-quite-scrabble-not-quite-fabulous/">much better job</a> describing how <span style="font-style: italic;">Scrabble</span> becomes fabulous on Facebook.<br /><br />That about wraps up our list of options for long-distance gaming. Hope your holidays are filled with friends, board games, and many presents that are also board games. Happy New Year, too.<br /><br /><hr width="100%" size="2" /><font color="gray"><em>Scott Jon Siegel is a fledgling game designer, a professional blogger, and a mediocre cook. His words and games can be found at <a href="http://numberless.net/">numberless</a>, and he'll see you all in 2008.<br /></em></font><p style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"> </p><p><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/12/27/off-the-grid-long-distance-gaming/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/1070372/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/12/27/off-the-grid-long-distance-gaming/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>]]></description><category>carcassonne</category><category>catan</category><category>fluxx</category><category>give-me-the-brain</category><category>icehouse</category><category>kill-doctor-lucky</category><category>off-the-grid</category><category>offthegrid</category><category>roborally</category><category>scrabble</category><category>settlers-of-catan</category><category>ticket-to-ride</category><dc:creator>Scott Jon Siegel</dc:creator><dc:date>2007-12-27T08:00:00+00:00</dc:date></item><item><title>MS confirms downloadable Xbox games, free Carcassonne for Live anniv.</title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2007/11/13/ms-confirms-downloadable-xbox-games-free-carcassonne-for-live-a/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2007/11/13/ms-confirms-downloadable-xbox-games-free-carcassonne-for-live-a/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2007/11/13/ms-confirms-downloadable-xbox-games-free-carcassonne-for-live-a/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/xbox360/" rel="tag">Microsoft Xbox 360</a></p><div align="center"><img vspace="4" hspace="0" border="0" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/11/xbox_live-logo.jpg" alt="xbl" /></div>
<span style="float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-top: 7px;"> <iframe width="52" scrolling="no" height="80" frameborder="0" src="http://digg.com/tools/diggthis.php?u=http%3A//www.digg.com/gaming_news/Xbox_Originals_confirmed_for_360_free_XBLA_game_too"> </iframe></span>To mark the fifth anniversary of the Xbox Live service, Microsoft will be offering <em><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/tag/Carcassonne/">Carcassonne</a></em> (<em>Hexic 2</em> in Korea) free to all subscribers for 48 hours starting at 12:01 a.m. EST on Nov. 15th (and presumably <em>nothing</em> to the peeps who already plunked down for the virtual board game), along with 500 Microsoft Points to the ten folks who've been on board since 2002 -- see kids, early adoption does pay off! In addition, Microsoft has confirmed <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/11/13/fall-xbox-360-dashboard-update-revealed-download-halo-december/" target="_blank">earlier reports</a> that 'Xbox Originals' will be made available for download starting Dec. 4th as part of the Fall Update (the update's additional features have yet to be revealed). Each game can be purchased and downloaded for 1200 points ($15).<br /> <br />In its press release, Microsoft explicitly named <em>Halo, Psychonauts, Crimson Skies </em>and <em>Fable</em> as titles for the Xbox Originals initiative, but did not confirm exactly which games will serve as the jumpoff: "This new service will launch with an array of blockbuster titles spanning the most popular genres from action-adventure to classic role-playing games." Third-party reports claim the preliminary lineup will include <em>Halo, Fable, Indigo Prophecy, Crimson Skies, Crash Bandicoot: The Wrath Of Cortex</em> and <em>Burnout 3</em>.<br /><br />[Via press release]<p style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"> </p><p><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/11/13/ms-confirms-downloadable-xbox-games-free-carcassonne-for-live-a/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/1038969/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/11/13/ms-confirms-downloadable-xbox-games-free-carcassonne-for-live-a/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>]]></description><category>breakingnews</category><category>carcassonne</category><category>xbl</category><category>xbox</category><category>xbox-live</category><category>xbox-originals</category><category>xboxlive</category><dc:creator>James Ransom-Wiley</dc:creator><dc:date>2007-11-13T12:45:00+00:00</dc:date></item><item><title>Wednesday XBLA update adds Carcassonne 'King &amp; Baron'</title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/03/wednesday-xbla-update-adds-carcassonne-king-and-baron/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/03/wednesday-xbla-update-adds-carcassonne-king-and-baron/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/03/wednesday-xbla-update-adds-carcassonne-king-and-baron/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/xbox360/" rel="tag">Microsoft Xbox 360</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/online/" rel="tag">Online</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/strategy/" rel="tag">Strategy</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/casual/" rel="tag">Casual</a></p><div align="center"><a href="http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/c/carcassonnexboxlivearcade/"><img vspace="4" hspace="0" border="1" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/10/2carcassonne.jpg" alt="" /></a><br /></div>
Sierra and Microsoft have revisited the grid-based fortified town of <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/tag/Carcassonne/"><em>Carcassonne</em></a>, as the XBLA rendition of the <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2006/11/09/off-the-grid-carcassonne-review/">popular European board game</a> has gotten a new downloadable expansion titled "The King and Baron" as part of today's regular XBLA update, which also includes block dropper <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/01/this-wednesday-tetris-splash-dives-into-xbla/" target="_blank"><em>Tetris Splash</em></a>. <br /><br />With an asking price of 300 Microsoft Points ($3.75), the download is the second such expansion following the already available "River I &amp; II," and adds a set of five additional tiles described as '<em>interesting configurations of Town pieces</em>,' as well as pair of new rules. We're not exactly sure what they mean by "interesting" ... perhaps they <em>glow</em>.<br /><br />The new rules are designed to award those players with either the largest city or the longest road at the end of the game with a pair of icons placed next to their avatars and Gamertags. But it's not just for looks or bragging rights, <em>no sir! </em>With this expansion, the player with the biggest city, identified by a newly added '<em>portly</em>' King icon, will receive one point for each completed city in the game, while the player with the mightiest of roads, denoted by a '<em>crafty</em>' Robber Baron, will take home one point for each completed road in the game -- and you <em>know</em> how much we love to pile up them points.<p style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"> </p><p><a href=http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/c/carcassonnexboxlivearcade/>Read</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/03/wednesday-xbla-update-adds-carcassonne-king-and-baron/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/1004649/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/03/wednesday-xbla-update-adds-carcassonne-king-and-baron/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>]]></description><category>baron</category><category>boardgame</category><category>Carcassonne</category><category>expansion</category><category>king</category><category>XBLA</category><dc:creator>Jason Dobson</dc:creator><dc:date>2007-10-03T18:26:00+00:00</dc:date></item><item><title>Today in Joystiq: June 25, 2007</title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/today-in-joystiq-june-25-2007/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/today-in-joystiq-june-25-2007/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/today-in-joystiq-june-25-2007/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/casual/" rel="tag">Casual</a></p><div align="center"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/tag/dailyrecap"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/06/carc-in-altoids-tin.jpg"  alt="" /></a></div>
Flickr user <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/jeremybroomfield/39243831/">Universal Donor</a> made a smaller version of <em><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/tag/Carcassonne/">Carcassonne</a> </em>to fit in an Altoids tin.  "I know this stupid, but I like creating versions of my favorite games that can fit in an Altoids tin," he writes -- we think it's cool, though. Check out the highlights for today:<br /><br /><strong>Joystiquery<br /></strong><a target="_blank" title="View The Guessing Game: Sony's E3 showing on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/the-guessing-game-sonys-e3-showing/">The Guessing Game: Sony's E3 showing</a><br /><a target="_blank" title="View Joystiq at the Ninja Gaiden Band concert on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/joystiq-at-the-ninja-gaiden-band-concert/">Joystiq at the Ninja Gaiden Band concert</a><br /><a target="_blank" title="View Today's most retro action game: Die Hard (NES) on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/todays-most-retro-action-game-die-hard-nes/">Today's most retro action game: Die Hard (NES)</a><br /><br /><strong>News<br /></strong><a target="_blank" title="View Believe it or not: Zelda in Smash Bros Brawl on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/believe-it-or-not-zelda-in-smash-bros-brawl/">Believe it or not: Zelda in Smash Bros Brawl</a><br /><a target="_blank" title="View F-Zero X, Street Fighter II Turbo rush onto Virtual Console on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/street-fighter-ii-turbo-f-zero-x-rush-onto-virtual-console/">F-Zero X, Street Fighter II Turbo rush onto Virtual Console</a><br /><a target="_blank" title="View Nintendo officially bigger than Sony in Japan on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/nintendo-officially-bigger-than-sony-in-japan/">Nintendo officially bigger than Sony in Japan</a><br /><a target="_blank" title="View New games this week: The Darkness edition on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/new-games-this-week-the-darkness-edition/">New games this week: The Darkness edition</a><br /><a target="_blank" title="View PSP firmware hack drives Lumines sales on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/psp-firmware-hack-drives-lumines-sales/">PSP firmware hack drives Lumines sales</a><br /><a target="_blank" title="View Nicole Kidman the pretty face of More Brain Training DS on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/nicole-kidman-the-pretty-face-of-more-brain-training-ds/">Nicole Kidman the pretty face of More Brain Training DS</a><br /><a target="_blank" title="View Newsweek's Croal, MTV's Totilo hands-on with Manhunt 2 on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/newsweeks-croal-mtvs-totilo-hands-on-with-manhunt-2/">Newsweek's Croal, MTV's Totilo hands-on with Manhunt 2</a><br /><a target="_blank" title="View This Wednesday: Carcassonne taunts from the castle wall on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/this-wednesday-carcassonne-taunts-from-the-castle-wall/">This Wednesday: Carcassonne taunts from the castle wall</a><br /><a target="_blank" title="View Pokemon takes Wii online in US on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/pokemon-takes-wii-online-in-us/">Pokemon takes Wii online in US</a><br /><a target="_blank" title="View Concept trailer for LEGO Universe: building, battling, bricking on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/concept-trailer-for-lego-universe-building-battling-bricking/">Concept trailer for LEGO Universe: building, battling, bricking</a><br /><a target="_blank" title="View Sony tells PSP devs to get creative, attract customers on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/sony-tells-psp-devs-to-get-creative/">Sony tells PSP devs to get creative, attract customers</a><br /><a target="_blank" title="View Romero unearths unreleased Doom music on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/romero-unearths-unreleased-doom-music/">Romero unearths unreleased Doom music</a><br /><a target="_blank" title="View Insomniac lands 8th in the '50 Best Companies to Work For' list on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/insomniac-lands-8th-in-the-50-best-companies-to-work-for-list/">Insomniac lands 8th in the '50 Best Companies to Work For' list</a><br /><a target="_blank" title="View Analysing the $1mil acquistion of WoW database site on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/analysing-the-1mil-acquistion-of-wow-database-site/">Analysing the $1mil acquistion of WoW database site</a><br /><a target="_blank" title="View Shadowrun developer gets honest (or scary) on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/shadowrun-developer-gets-honest-or-scary/">Shadowrun developer gets honest (or scary)</a><br /><a target="_blank" title="View Square Enix: No PS3 games (Final Fantasy XIII) until after April 2008 on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/square-enix-no-ps3-games-final-fantasy-xiii-until-after-april/">Square Enix: No PS3 games (Final Fantasy XIII) until after April 2008</a><br /><a target="_blank" title="View Third-party HDMI cable coming for non-Elite Xbox 360 on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/third-party-hdmi-cable-coming-for-non-elite-xbox-360/">Third-party HDMI cable coming for non-Elite Xbox 360</a><br /><a target="_blank" title="View Turrican remake released, rocks you like a Hurrican on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/turrican-remake-released-rocks-you-like-a-hurrican/">Turrican remake released, rocks you like a Hurrican</a><br /><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/esrb-seeks-to-rate-game-trailers/" title="View ESRB seeks to rate game trailers on Joystiq" target="_blank">ESRB seeks to rate game trailers</a><br /><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/gametap-leaks-franchises-coming-to-service/" title="View GameTap 'leaks' franchises coming to service on Joystiq" target="_blank">GameTap 'leaks' franchises coming to service</a><br /><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/cory-barlog-talks-e3-inside-the-developers-studio/" title="View Cory Barlog talks E3 inside the developers studio on Joystiq" target="_blank">Cory Barlog talks E3 inside the developers studio</a><br /><br /><strong>Rumors &amp; Speculation<br /></strong><a target="_blank" title="View Rumor: Hitman film trailer premiering with Die Hard on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/rumor-hitman-film-trailer-premiering-with-die-hard/">Rumor: Hitman film trailer premiering with Die Hard</a><br /><br /><strong>Culture &amp; Community<br /></strong><a target="_blank" title="View MacArthur Foundation funds NYC school to teach 'Gaming Literacy' on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/macarthur-foundation-funds-nyc-school-to-teach-gaming-literacy/">MacArthur Foundation funds NYC school to teach 'Gaming Literacy'</a><br /><a target="_blank" title="View Wiimote mod gets NES Zapper zappin' again on Joystiq" href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/wiimote-mod-gets-nes-zapper-zappin-again/">Wiimote mod gets NES Zapper zappin' again</a><br /><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/nintendo-hearts-the-environment/" title="View Nintendo hearts the environment on Joystiq" target="_blank">Nintendo hearts the environment</a><br /><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/college-librarians-urged-to-think-like-gamers-play-more-games/" title="View College librarians urged to think like gamers, play more games on Joystiq" target="_blank">College librarians urged to think like gamers, play more games</a><p style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"> </p><p><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/today-in-joystiq-june-25-2007/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/926244/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/06/25/today-in-joystiq-june-25-2007/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>]]></description><category>board game</category><category>BoardGame</category><category>carcassonne</category><category>daily recap</category><category>DailyRecap</category><dc:creator>Ross Miller</dc:creator><dc:date>2007-06-25T23:59:00+00:00</dc:date></item><item><title>Carcassonne finishes building before June release</title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2007/05/18/carcassonne-finishes-building-before-june-release/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2007/05/18/carcassonne-finishes-building-before-june-release/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2007/05/18/carcassonne-finishes-building-before-june-release/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/arcade/" rel="tag">Arcade</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/xbox360/" rel="tag">Microsoft Xbox 360</a></p><object width="425" height="354" id="gtembed" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=8,0,0,0" classid="clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000">
<param value="sameDomain" name="allowScriptAccess" />
<param value="http://www.gametrailers.com/remote_wrap.php?mid=19581" name="movie" />
<param value="high" name="quality" /> <embed width="425" height="354" align="middle" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" quality="high" allowscriptaccess="sameDomain" name="gtembed" swliveconnect="true" src="http://www.gametrailers.com/remote_wrap.php?mid=19581"></embed> </object><br />If you're one of people who's been enjoying what <em>Catan</em> brought to XBLA, then get ready for <em>Carcassonne</em>, another European <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2006/11/09/off-the-grid-carcassonne-review/">board game powerhouse</a> landing next month. <em>Carcassonne</em> is more about tile and villager placement than <em>Catan</em>'s resource management and diplomacy. The game, which <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/04/16/carcassonne-making-roads-into-xbox-live-arcade-on-june-7th/">premieres</a> in June, had some more details released onto the villagers before the big unveil.<br /><br />IGN <a href="http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/789/789023p1.html">reports</a> that the visual style is very similar to <em>Catan</em>, however players will not by able to rotate the playing field, only zoom in and out and pan. Games are under 20 minutes in two-player and under 10 for five-player and includes Vision camera support. The XBLA version of <em>Carcassonne</em> also includes the "River I &amp; II" expansion packs that were apparently released later for the board game. Players lay the river to begin the match in this version instead of starting with the basic castle/road starter tile of the original game. Sierra says other add-ons to the board game like I<em>nns &amp; Cathedral</em> and <em>The Tower</em> will be released through Xbox Live. We hope the transaction ends up being truly micro. <em>Carcassonne</em> is expected to cost 800 MS points ($10 USD). We can only hope the <em>Carcassonne</em> gamers are as <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/05/08/is-catan-changing-xbox-live/">civilized</a> as the <em>Catan</em> crew.<p style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"> </p><p><a href=http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/789/789023p1.html>Read</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/05/18/carcassonne-finishes-building-before-june-release/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/899355/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/05/18/carcassonne-finishes-building-before-june-release/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>]]></description><category>board game</category><category>carcassonne</category><category>catan</category><category>xbla</category><category>xbox</category><dc:creator>Alexander Sliwinski</dc:creator><dc:date>2007-05-18T17:57:00+00:00</dc:date></item><item><title>Carcassonne making roads to Xbox Live Arcade on June 7th</title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2007/04/16/carcassonne-making-roads-into-xbox-live-arcade-on-june-7th/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2007/04/16/carcassonne-making-roads-into-xbox-live-arcade-on-june-7th/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2007/04/16/carcassonne-making-roads-into-xbox-live-arcade-on-june-7th/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/retro/" rel="tag">Retro</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/xbox360/" rel="tag">Microsoft Xbox 360</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/online/" rel="tag">Online</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/competitive-gaming/" rel="tag">Competitive Gaming</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/casual/" rel="tag">Casual</a></p><div align="center"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/04/carcassoness1.jpg" alt="" /><br />Click <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/media/2007/04/carcassonness2.jpg"><em>here</em></a> for a larger version of this screenshot.<br /><br /></div>
Although it's taken almost a <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2006/08/23/xbox-live-aracade-to-get-settlers-of-catan-and-other-euro-board-ga/">year</a> to arrive, Xbox Live Arcade players and board game lovers can rejoice: <em>Carcassonne</em> will finally be coming to XBLA in June. <br /><br />It's no secret that we're <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2006/11/09/off-the-grid-carcassonne-review/">fans</a> of the original board game, so the announcement of a date comes as a welcome relief, and a cruel form of torture knowing we'll have to wait more than a month to get it. To whet your appetite even more, check out a slew of <em>Carcassonne</em> screenshots <a href="http://www.xboxusersgroup.com/gallery/showgallery.php?cat=1091">here</a>.<br /><br />Power to the Meeple.<br /><br />[Via <a href="http://www.gamestooge.com/2007/04/15/carcassonne-to-hit-xbla-in-june/">GameStooge</a>]<p style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"> </p><p><a href=http://www.xboxusersgroup.com/index.php?option=com_content&amp;task=view&amp;id=3520&amp;Itemid=139>Read</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/04/16/carcassonne-making-roads-into-xbox-live-arcade-on-june-7th/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/875019/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/04/16/carcassonne-making-roads-into-xbox-live-arcade-on-june-7th/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>]]></description><category>Carcassonne</category><category>Settlers of Catan</category><category>Xbox Live Arcade</category><dc:creator>Kevin Kelly</dc:creator><dc:date>2007-04-16T10:57:00+00:00</dc:date></item><item><title>Rumor: Puerto Rico coming to XBLA</title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2007/03/02/rumor-puerto-rico-coming-to-xlba/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2007/03/02/rumor-puerto-rico-coming-to-xlba/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2007/03/02/rumor-puerto-rico-coming-to-xlba/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/culture/" rel="tag">Culture</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/retro/" rel="tag">Retro</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/xbox360/" rel="tag">Microsoft Xbox 360</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/online/" rel="tag">Online</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/competitive-gaming/" rel="tag">Competitive Gaming</a></p><a href="http://www.gamestooge.com/2007/03/02/hot-rumor-puerto-rico-to-xbox-live-arcade/"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/03/puertorico1.jpg" alt="" /></a><br />It looks like board game lovers are going to be getting even more Euro gaming goodness. At least, that's what the signs are pointing to. We already know that Xbox Live Arcade will be <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2006/08/23/xbox-live-aracade-to-get-settlers-of-catan-and-other-euro-board-ga/">getting games</a> like <em>Settlers of Catan</em>, <em>Alhambra</em>, and our personal favorite <em><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2006/11/09/off-the-grid-carcassonne-review/">Carcassonne</a></em>, but according to some <a href="http://www.gamestooge.com/2007/03/02/hot-rumor-puerto-rico-to-xbox-live-arcade/">rumors</a> at GameStooge it looks like another Rio Grande Games classic will be coming down the pipeline ... <em>Puerto Rico</em>.<br /><br />Apparently in the threads over at <a href="http://www.boardgamegeek.com/thread/153834/page/1">BoardGameGeek.com</a> (which is a fantastic site for board games and such, along with the equally as fantastic <a href="http://www.funagain.com/control/product/~product_id=012491">FunAgain.com</a>) the German gaming site BrettSpielWelt has taken down their online version of <em>Puerto Rico</em>, and replaced it with a message that another company has purchased the rights for "online exploitation." And c'mon, no one is better at exploiting things than Microsoft, right?<br /><br /><em>Puerto Rico </em>is a fun game that takes about an hour to play, and is all about shipping goods and building cities. It's been critically hailed as one of the best games of the past twenty years, already has a PC version out, and it's continually voted the number one game at board game sites, and it sure would be nice to see it on XBLA.<p style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"> </p><p><a href=http://www.gamestooge.com/2007/03/02/hot-rumor-puerto-rico-to-xbox-live-arcade/>Read</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/03/02/rumor-puerto-rico-coming-to-xlba/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/844443/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/03/02/rumor-puerto-rico-coming-to-xlba/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>]]></description><category>Alhambra</category><category>Arcade</category><category>board games</category><category>Carcassonne</category><category>Off the Grid</category><category>Puerto Rico</category><category>Rio Grande Games</category><category>Settlers</category><category>Settlers of Catan</category><category>XBLA</category><category>Xbos 360</category><category>Xbox</category><category>Xbox Live Arcade</category><dc:creator>Kevin Kelly</dc:creator><dc:date>2007-03-02T13:33:00+00:00</dc:date></item><item><title>Xbox Live Aracade to get Settlers of Catan &amp; other Euro board games</title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2006/08/23/xbox-live-aracade-to-get-settlers-of-catan-and-other-euro-board-ga/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2006/08/23/xbox-live-aracade-to-get-settlers-of-catan-and-other-euro-board-ga/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2006/08/23/xbox-live-aracade-to-get-settlers-of-catan-and-other-euro-board-ga/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/arcade/" rel="tag">Arcade</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/xbox360/" rel="tag">Microsoft Xbox 360</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/online/" rel="tag">Online</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/strategy/" rel="tag">Strategy</a></p><a href="http://1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3153084"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="0" align="right" alt="The Settlers of Catan" id="vimage_1" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2006/08/settlersofcatan.jpg" /></a>Microsoft has announced plans to port European tabletop favorites like <em>The Settlers of Catan</em>, <em>Carcassonne</em> and <em>Alhambra </em>to Xbox Live Arcade. Price details and release dates have not been revealed, but the <em>Catan</em> port is likely to appear first as MSN Games has been hosting an <a href="http://joystiq.com/2004/12/22/settlers-of-catan-online/" target="_blank">online version</a> of the German board game for nearly two years.<p style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"> </p><p><a href=http://1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3153084>Read</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2006/08/23/xbox-live-aracade-to-get-settlers-of-catan-and-other-euro-board-ga/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/658215/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a> | <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2006/08/23/xbox-live-aracade-to-get-settlers-of-catan-and-other-euro-board-ga/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a></p>]]></description><category>Alhambra</category><category>Carcassonne</category><category>Settlers of Catan</category><category>SettlersOfCatan</category><category>Xbox Live</category><category>Xbox Live Arcade</category><category>XboxLive</category><category>XboxLiveArcade</category><dc:creator>James Ransom-Wiley</dc:creator><dc:date>2006-08-23T15:55:00+00:00</dc:date></item></channel></rss>