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It certainly feels like WayForward is being picked as the developer for series revivals and tributes, doesn’t it? Between its work on games like Advance Wars: Re-Boot Camp and River City Girls 2, it seems to specialize in bright, poppy takes on classics. Yars Rising feels perfectly at home among its siblings, with the same bright color schemes and character designs. However, while it is entertaining and the integration of the source material is clever, I sometimes felt like it didn’t stand out enough to be truly memorable. 

Emi “Yars” Kimura is a hacker. She’s working with a group of her friends to infiltrate an obviously evil organization called QoTech. That means pretending to work as an employee until she gets a chance to sneak into the server room, attach a USB dongle and get out. She manages that! But immediately after she does, she’s caught and thrown into a “holding” center in the building. After sneaking through some vents and hacking into an unusual terminal, she finds herself with new biohacks that augment her abilities, giving her the ability to shoot or generate energy wings to dash or jump. Armed with these new talents she aims to get out and deal with the ruthless execs and their minions.

The “Yars” element comes up in multiple ways. Some of it relates to the story. Yar is Emi’s hacker moniker. She has a tattoo of the character. Not to mention Emi’s last name — Kimura — is a reference to Atari artist Hiro Kimura. The evil corporation is QoTech, not unlike the enemy Qotile in the original game. But the most evident is the actual inclusion of Yars’ Revenge sorts of gameplay when hacking. In order to open new paths, gain abilities, or generally accomplish goals, Emi will need to hack terminals at the company. When she does, a hacking minigame ensues that is actually standard Yars series gameplay. So maybe you’ll be firing a cannon to get through Qotile shields. Though also, there will be times when it is more like Space Invaders and you’re shooting enemies advancing toward you. 

While I do applaud the way in which WayForward successfully blended Yars’ Revenge with the Metroidvania elements in Yars Rising and think it is clever to include the original gameplay as a hacking minigame, I also found it slightly frustrating. This is primarily due to how often hacking does come up as Emi makes her way through QoTech’s building. Yars’ Revenge can get to be quite a challenging game, and when those situations keep coming up and penalize you by zapping Emi’s health for failure, it can start feeling less than novel. On the plus side, WayForward seems to even acknowledge this, as there’s an option to make yourself invincible for these hacking segments to more quickly get through them.

Especially since the core gameplay in Yars Rising is an accessible Metroidvania. Emi is going through Qotech, acquiring biohacks that allow her to further escape the company’s clutches after being caught hacking. It’s fairly straightforward and I didn’t find it as complicated or challenging as a title like Metroid Dread. However, the clear influences are there. Especially since early on, before you acquire a weapon, there’s a high reliance on stealth to proceed. The gameplay here is quite solid. It’s easy to maneuver Emi around her environment, and the upgrades we eventually acquire only serves to make that even more fluid. It’s a genuinely good time. I really enjoyed running and gunning my way through it.

However, while I did enjoy myself, Yars Rising’s art direction, enemy design, and environments didn’t really excite me. The human character designs are great, but the enemies ended up looking a bit generic. Ones that leaned more into insect motifs fared a bit better, but areas around QoTech and most foes felt cookie cutter. I will say that it did make me appreciate the designs that did lean more into classic Yars or even other Atari properties when they’d come up. Especially since the concept — hackers against a big bad corporation — also is incredibly commonly treaded ground. Since most of the more unusual twists only come up in the second half, it takes a while for those elements to feel unique.

I appreciate what WayForward did with Yars Rising, as it incorporates the source material in some cool ways while doing something entirely new. It’s a solid Metroidvania, and bringing in Yars’ Revenge gameplay for hacking can be entertaining. I just feel that even with the unusual approach to hacking, some design elements and decisions feel a bit bland. It’s enjoyable, but I’m not entirely sure it’s very memorable. 

Yars Rising is available on the Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC. 

The post Review: Yars Rising Mixes Yars’ Revenge With Metroidvania Style appeared first on Siliconera.

LEGO kicked off a sale on its official storefront, and multiple game-related sites tied to Atari, Minecraft, and Super Mario are reduced. Discounts tend to hover between 20% and 40% off, though it varies depending on the sets. 

Here are all the Atari, Minecraft, and Super Mario sets currently on sale. Note that in the case of the Mario ones, they are playsets that involve the interactive Mario, Luigi, or Peach figure. As such, someone would also need that part to make the most of them if it isn’t already included. For example, the Adventures with Peach set comes with a figure someone would need.

• Adventures with Luigi Starter Course - $41.99, normally $59.99
• Adventures with Peach Starter Course - $41.99, normally $59.99
• Dixie Kong’s Jungle Jam Expansion Set - $21.59, normally $26.99
• LEGO Atari 2600 - $143.99, normally $239.99
• LEGO Minecraft The Pumpkin Farm Set - $31.99, normally $39.99
• Peach’s Castle Expansion Set - $103.99, normally $129.99
• Peach’s Garden Balloon Ride Expansion Set - $39.99, normally $49.99
• Rambi the Rhino Expansion Set - $7.69, normally $10.99

The sale also includes a number of Disney LEGO sets. For example, The Little Mermaid live-action Royal Clamshell set is $111.99. A lot of Marvel sets also appear, like the Avengers Endgame Final Battle one for $69.99. However, standard sets like the $97.99 Main Street one are also available.

The LEGO Store sale is live as of July 16, 2024.

The post LEGO Store Sale Discounts Atari, Mario, and Minecraft Sets appeared first on Siliconera.

As we discussed in our review, Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration is definitely more of a museum than a gameplay showcase, but there are still a heck of a lot of games in here to play! So where should you start? Here are our picks for the best Atari 50 titles to try.

Note: these selections are about trying for the first time now. There’s undeniably a lot of nostalgia value here! And some that hold up better if you’re used to the control schemes of yesteryear. But hey, if you already know where you want to start? You don’t need us to tell you anything!

The best Atari 50 arcade game: Warlords 1d2x5w

Atari 50’s selection of arcade titles is drawn from the company’s early days, largely out of necessity: that division was sold off, so later releases are owned by someone else. Still, these years definitely include some classics. Like Jobs’ and Wozniak’s Breakout! Or the grandpappy itself, Pong!

Our favorite, though, is Warlords, a title that thrives in today’s barcade era with its intense multiplayer and simple-but-intuitive controls. This isn’t the original game, exactly — as the game’s quick to point out, the 2600 version was designed first — but it certainly feels like the definitive one. It also benefits from Digital Eclipse’s implementation of the full arcade experience, with overlays and bezels to make the action appear fairly close to it did in its original context.

The best Atari 50 Atari 2600 game: Combat 2z2l1s

The 2600 — or Video Computer System for you fellow old-heads — is undoubtedly Atari’s most iconic console. As a result, it saw the most releases in general, and certainly leads to the most inclusions in Atari 50. But they’re also the ones that have been plastered onto any device willing to license them! So in many ways they’re not the draw for this collection.

Still, if you’re looking for a game that stands the test of time? A two-player game of Combat can’t really be beat. A few later releases in the franchise are included in Atari 50, including an entirely new one with a Bomberman-like feel! But there’s something about the simplicity of the original. We’re usually the items-on sort of people, but Combat shows the appeal of distilling everything down to reading an opponent’s movements.

The best Atari 50 Atari 800 game: Yoomp! 22m10

The Atari 800 had a lot of fans in its day, but the best 800 game in the collection is, well, decidedly not of its day. This 2007 fan release is essentially an endless runner, as you bounce over holes in a tube and stay alive. Like a lot of modern homebrew, Yoomp! uses advanced techniques to look and play a lot better than most games of the 800 era. Atari 50 does make some oblique references to the homebrew scene, mostly around a Ready Player One project, but it’s a fascinating topic and one we’d love to see compiled and preserved more deeply.

The best Atari 50 5200/7800 game: Dark Chambers 2y6236

It may seem a bit weird to lump these two together, but the 5200 largely didn’t get much time to develop its identity, and its presence here largely consists of arcade ports. And... it’s 2022! Play the arcade version.

The 7800, though, fares a bit better. Dark Chambers is a Gauntlet-like dungeon crawl game, with the advantage of being able to take a breath without your life ticking frantically downward. The controls don’t feel awful, either? Which we note only because it’s such a rarity in the Atari console library. Just don’t accidentally play the 2600 version of the game, which is also here. It’s... compressed, in some perhaps uncomfortable ways, to fit on the platform.

The best Atari 50 Lynx game: Scrapyard Dog 50126s

We’ve talked about the Lynx before — largely in the context of its Evercade title compilations — and that context maybe works better for the library than this one. Lynx games need the smallest screen you can find to make a lot of visual sense! Even more than its Game Boy and Game Gear peers.

Still, you might have some fun with Scrapyard Dog? Maybe? Heading back to the included Lynx games feels more like a curiosity, and no game in the bunch is as curious as this quirky platformer.

The best Atari 50 Jaguar game: Tempest 2000 1n5q66

It’s not hard to see why the Jaguar failed, judging only by the selections in Atari 50. While there are a few gems on the system not included, the ones here were a big part of its presence in the market. And they’re not great! We can’t say they age poorly, because their loose controls and muddied visuals seem like they’d have been just as disappointing at the time.

Nevertheless, we’ll make a pick: Tempest 2000. Surprised? Of course not! Jeff Minter’s psychedelic game has developed a cult following in the years since its release, and even seen sequels both spiritual and officially licensed. Simply put, both its look and its gameplay are infused with a style that doesn’t rely on at-the-time comparisons to impress. It’s nice to see the game more widely available, especially for more recent fans, so they can experience more of the series. That’s probably all we’re going to get, too! At least until Digital Eclipse gets around to making a Nuon compilation.

The best new Atari 50 game: VCTR-SCTR 3z4v21

If you’re not playing Atari 50 for the history, we suppose you might be here for Digital Eclipse’s smattering of new experiences. They don’t have the scope of full 2022 games, certainly! And they’re all over the place in of visuals and purpose. But many of them are fascinating.

Our favorite? VCTR-SCTR. While the others in the bunch are riffs on one old game, this one’s a tribute to the company’s wider vector catalog. Swapping between Asteroids and Lunar Lander is a bit frantic! In a fun way! Um, usually. It didn’t make us finally good at Lunar Lander, but still. We had a good time.

Developed by Digital Eclipse and published by Atari, Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration launched on November 11, 2022 for $39.99. It’s available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox One and Series S/X, PC and... really? Yep, even the Atari VCS.

The post The Best Atari 50 Games to Actually Play Today appeared first on Siliconera.

When we’ve covered compilations of older titles in the past, we've often found them to be less valuable as games to play in the modern era and more suited as a documentary archive to peruse. With Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration, Digital Eclipse shows an understanding of its aging subject matter, treating it with reverence but also building its collection around being an educational time capsule.

In Atari 50, you’ll find two separate presentation schemes. The first: a four-part timeline, presenting videos and scanned artifacts interspersed with the related games themselves. You can by this and head to the second, a sortable game library, if you want! But it’s clearly intended for you to peruse the exhibits first and not just run and raid the gift shop.

This museum approach makes sense! After all, trying to sell a Jaguar compilation as "fun games you should play" is, frankly, ill-advised. But putting some here, as an intellectual curiosity surrounded by artifacts of the day and an explanation of their place in history? Now that works.

Atari 50's narrative has a clear point of view, too: that of the designers and programmers of the era. This is logical! That was who they were able to interview, and the team at Digital Eclipse likely identifies with their position most. There's no real effort to get into the business side of things along the way. We would love to have heard what it was like to market the systems and games, or the business realities of Jaguar-era Atari! But this ain’t an independent project; it's bankrolled by the company that relies upon preserving and promoting nostalgia for Atari's games. There’s an unshakable veneer of PR to the selected topics.

Atari 50 also skips from 1998 to 2020, avoiding covering the ups and downs of that era. And we get it. The compilation likely couldn't cover that with the same detachment of the earlier times. (And those execs are maybe still there.) But it could have been worth a few mentions of what Atari did then, like the Atari Flashback's role in the proliferation of plug-and-play consoles and some of the quirkier merchandise to come out of the move to licensing out the brand.

Ultimately, it's no wonder why later Atari systems like the Jaguar failed. The compilation talks a lot about the marketing problems (which likely didn’t help), but they also had, uh, these games to use to sell the hardware. A few included Jaguar and Lynx games in here can still be fun, but between being limited to first-party releases and the Jag's efforts to show off new tech at the expense of coherent visual design and controls? Yeah, the selection doesn’t particularly stand the test of time.

Both the good and bad of the later Atari consoles stems from a strict adherence to design philosophies established over a decade before. The best titles recapture the white-knuckle arcade feel of Tempest, while others feel like they can’t catch up with the approachability and polish of their modern genre peers.

As a case study, let's look at Atari Karts, a fairly standard racing game for the Jaguar. There's a desire to look "technologically superior," which manifests itself in some rough ways. Tons of colors! Uh, without considering whether it looks any good. Three-dimensional hills on the otherwise-essentially-Mode-7 race track! That honestly disrupt and mildly disorient more than make the driving interesting. Meanwhile, the menus are clunky. The controls are already on less-than-solid footing, before you deal with the game's collision detection. The sound design is, um, yeah. Bad.

Anyway, you get it. We're psyched to see the work to make Jaguar games playable by a wider audience, but they serve as a spectacle and a curiosity. We don't recommend you play them with any seriousness.

Conversely, the older games feel more modern. The controls and such do take some time to grasp for those who didn't play them back in the day, but games like Combat and Asteroids are elegant in their technologically forced simplicity.

Our tip for navigating the best of the 2600 games in the library? Sort by year, then play the early stuff. It's still a great time to boot up Surround or Outlaw with a pal. On the other hand, some of the ambition of later titles exposes the weaknesses and limitations of the hardware. And it's often in ways that make the games themselves more painful to play.

And then, of course, there are actually a few new games in Atari 50, a generous selection of originals in a compilation already stuffed with content. They vary widely in scope and concept. There's the basically-a-2600 game, Swordquest Airworld. This completes the intended four-game series of puzzly adventures. Yars' Revenge has gotten a gameplay-identical facelift, one that can swap to the original look at any time. Haunted Houses, meanwhile, is a self-indulgent sort of project. It's a 3D reimagining of the original horror game that is more of a thought experiment than a viable title on its own.

The remaining three are the ones that most deserve your attention: Quadratank, Neo Breakout and VCTR-SCTR. They're all more thought-out, and based on gameplay that holds up fairly well today. So let's start with Quadratank! This one leans into ideas from modern single-screen party games such as Bomberman and the Atari 50 devs' own IDARB, and feels more frantic and less calculated than the original Tank and Combat releases. VCTR-SCTR mashes up the company's old vector games into one experience, moving the multitasking dial just a bit closer to the WarioWare side of things. And Neo Breakout is, well, Breakout! But games like Shatter have shown that the gameplay formula pairs well with some cool visual effects, and that's just what we get here. There's also a mode that brings in aspects of Pong to create a head-to-head mode that works fairly well.

As an interactive museum exhibit, Atari 50 is quite successful, if with a clear point of view. As a labor of love, it's filled to the brim with everything Digital Eclipse could fit. Whether it transcends "well-crafted curiosity" status, though? That'll depend on your nostalgia for a library of games that has some trouble standing the test of time.

Developed by Digital Eclipse and published by Atari, Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration launched on November 11, 2022 for $39.99. It’s available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox One and Series S/X, PC and... even the Atari VCS, somehow.

The post Review: With Atari 50’s Interactive Museum, Digital Eclipse Shows a Bright Future for Compilations appeared first on Siliconera.

Home arcade manufacturer Arcade1up showed off its 2022 slate at this year's CES, including commemorative Bandai Namco and Mortal Kombat cabinets and the start of a new, high-end Pro line.

New announcements in the company's Legacy line include Bandai Namco, Midway and Atari cabinets. Each one includes 14 games and is centered around one of the releases. The Bandai Namco release is Pac-Mania-themed. The Mortal Kombat-themed Midway cabinet celebrates the franchise's 30th anniversary. The Atari one? It's built around Centipede. These will also include online leaderboards. All three of the Arcade1up Legacy Edition cabinets are slated for a spring 2022 release.

Here are the included games in each collection:

Arcade1up Bandai Namco Legacy 5h2t2t

• Dig Dig
• Dig Dug II
• Galaga
• Galaga '88
• Galaxian
• Mappy
• Pac & Pal
• Pac-Land
• Pac-Man
• Pac-Man Plus
• Pac-Mania
• Rolling Thunder
• Rompers
• Super Pac-Man

Arcade1up Midway Legacy 6k4h

• Bubbles
• Defender
• Gauntlet
• Joust
• Klax
• Mortal Kombat
• Mortal Kombat II
• Mortal Kombat 3
• Paperboy
• Rampage
• Rootbeer Tapper
• Toobin
• Ultimate MK3
• Wizard of Wor

Arcade1up Atari Legacy j84j

• Akka Arrh
• Asteroids
• Asteroids Deluxe
• Centipede
• Crystal Castles
• Gravitar
• Liberator
• Lunar Lander
• Major Havoc
• Millipede
• Missile Command
• Space Duel
• Super Breakout
• Tempest

Check out more images of the new cabinets in the gallery.

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In addition to the Legacy releases, the Arcade1up CES 2022 announcement included the first in a new Pro line of higher-end machines. These have a larger 19-inch screen and upgraded components. The first, a Killer Instinct collection, will launch in summer 2022. The cabinet will include five games. The full list of included titles hasn't been announced.

Get a better look at the Arcade1up Killer Instinct cabinet below.

[gallery ids="910780,910779,910778" link="file"]

More information on the Arcade1up CES 2022 announcements can be found on the company's site.

The post Bandai Namco, Mortal Kombat Lead Arcade1up CES 2022 Reveals appeared first on Siliconera.

More classic games will appear on the Evercade. The company announced four new cartridges bound for the handheld and Evercade VS system. The Evercade Atari Arcade 1, Data East Arcade 1, Gaelco Arcade, and Technos Arcade 1 collections will all debut on November 3, 2021. Pre-orders will open for them on May 28, 2021. They will each cost $19.99/£14.99.

As usual, these are compilation cartridges. Each one includes multiple retro games. The one with the smallest library is Gaelco Arcade, with only six games in the collection. The Atari Arcade 1 Evercade cartridge includes the most titles at 13.

Here are the full game lists for each of these cartridges.

• Atari Arcade 1 includes Asteroids Deluxe, Canyon Bomber, Centipede, Crystal Castles, Liberator, Lunar Lander, Millipede, Missile Command, Night Driver, Pong, Skydiver, Super Breakout, and Warlords.
• Data East Arcade 1 includes Bad Dudes vs Dragon Ninja, Breakthru, Burger Time, Chain Reaction, Dark Seal, Darwin 4078, Lock ‘n’ Chase, Sly Spy, Tumblepop, and Wizard Fire.
• Gaelco Arcade includes Alligator Hunt, Biomechanical Toy, Glass, Snow Board Championship, Thunder Hoop, and World Rally.
• Technos Arcade 1 includes The Combatribes, Block Out, Battle Lane Vol. 5, Double Dragon II: The Revenge, Double Dragon III: The Rosetta Stone, Mania Challenge, Minky Monkey, and Mysterious Stones: Dr. John’s Adventure.

Here's a trailer for the new collections.

The Evercade Atari Arcade 1, Data East Arcade 1, Gaelco Arcade, and Technos Arcade 1 cartridges will launch on November 3, 2021. That is the same day the Evercade VS system will debut. The original Evercade is available now.

The post Evercade Atari, Data East, Gaelco and Technos Carts Revealed appeared first on Siliconera.

CES 2021 is in full swing, which means Arcade 1Up revealed a number of its cabinets. Some of them are entirely new. For example, there will be Arcade 1Up Killer Instinct, Dragon’s Lair, and Space Ace cabinets available in 2021. Some offer a new sort of look or take, such as the Atari, Bandai Namco, and Capcom Legacy Edition cabinets. Meanwhile, the Pong and X-Men variants give you a way to play four-player games.

Some of the variants are pretty basic and offer exactly what you’d expect. The Arcade 1Up Killer Instinct cabinet is also something of a celebration of Rare in general. It includes the original game, Killer Instinct 2, and then both Battletoads and Battletoads / Double Dragon. Live WiFi will be enabled for online matches. Both the Dragon’s Lair and Space Ace cabinets offer the same games, but a different appearance. Each one gives people access to Dragon’s Lair, Dragon’s Lair 2: Time Warp, and Space Ace.

[gallery ids="867170,867171,867172" link="file"]

With the Legacy Edition cabinets, each one will have a retro look inspired by classic arcade cabinets and a line-up of retro games. The Atari model will include Akka Arrh, Asteroids, Asteroids Deluxe, Centipede, Crystal Castles, Gravitar, Liberator, Major Havoc, Millipede, Missile Command, Space Duel, and Tempest. The Bandai Namco one will give people access to Dig Dug, Dig Dug II, Galaga, Galaxian, Pac-Land, Pac-Man, Pac-Mania, Pac & Pal, Mappy, Rompers, and Super Pac-Man. Finally, the Capcom cabinet will have 1994: Loop Master, Commando, Darkstalkers, Final Fight, Ghosts ‘n Goblins, Street Fighter, Street Fighter II: Turbo Hyper Fighting, Street Fighter II: The World Warriors, and Strider.

Here are videos of all three. First, here's the Atari Legacy Edition.

This is the Bandai Namco Legacy Edition.

And this is the Capcom Legacy Edition.

As for the two four-player cabinets, each one includes multiple games to play alone or with a group. The Pong option is a pub table cabinet and will include Circus Atari, Pong, Pong Doubles, Pong Sports, Quadra Pong, Super Breakout, Tempest, and Warlords. The X-Men four-player cabinet, which also will have Live WiFi for playing locally or online, will include X-Men, The Avengers in Galactic Storm, and Captain America and the Avengers.

[gallery columns="2" link="file" ids="867173"]

Release dates aren’t available yet for Arcade 1UP new cabinets, but we should begin seeing them appear in 2021.

The post Arcade 1Up Killer Instinct and Dragon’s Lair Cabinets Revealed appeared first on Siliconera.

Ahead of PAX South 2016, Atari has announced one of the games it will show for the first time at the event. The company is bringing Atari Vault, a new greatest hits collection, to PCs. This entry will have 100 Atari games bundled together, with local and online multiplayer options being available in some titles.

Atari didn’t get into all of the Atari Vault details just yet. However, Code Mystics is developing the collection, which is confirmed to include Asteroids, Centipede, Missile Command, Tempest, and Warlords. It will also have a new UI and offer Steam Leaderboards. Valve’s Steam Controller will be ed as well.

Atari Vault will be released on Steam in spring 2016. Atari will be bringing it, as well as the Apple iOS’ Pridefest  and RollerCoaster Tycoon World for PCs, to PAX South 2016 on January 29-31, 2016.

The post Atari Vault Adds Online And Local Multiplayer To 100 Retro Games appeared first on Siliconera.

Atari’s second recent Ghostbusters game is a digital, 4-player cooperative shooter, developed by Behaviour, that has you controlling it top down, a la Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light. The game s both local and online co-op modes. 

Slated for release this week on Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network and PC, Ghostbusters: Sanctum of Slime has you playing as four new Ghostbusters recruits, but Atari say that they’ll have connections to other Ghostbusters characters like Janosz Poha, the museum curator from the Ghostbusters II movie.

During the game, they’ll be mentored by the original Ghostbusters team, who were the ones that hired them, following an outbreak of ghosts. The script for Sanctum of Slime was penned by Tom Waltz, who wrote the Ghostbusters comics published by IDW.

You can watch a trailer and check out screenshots for Sanctum of Slime in this older post.

The post Ghostbusters: Sanctum of Slime Busts Loose This Week appeared first on Siliconera.

Atari and Killspace Entertainment are rebooting Yars' Revenge by giving it an anime makeover. The original game players controlled a bug-like alien. In the 2011 game, the main character is a woman in insect armor.

While both games are shooters, Yars' Revenge (2011) is an on-rails shooter with three main kinds of weapons: regular laser, lock-on missiles, and a railgun for enemies on the ground. Kind of reminds me of Panzer Dragoon... sans dragons.

The post Yars’ Revenge Is Like A Stylish Panzer Dragoon appeared first on Siliconera.

Atari have a new game out on the PlayStation Network today, titled The UnderGarden. A combination of exploration and puzzle-solving, The UnderGarden has you start out in an eerie-looking underground world with strange life forms.

When you first enter the world of The UnderGarden, you won’t see much life. It’s your job to change this, by collecting pollen and planting flowers. Flowers add colour and musical melodies to the world. They also bear fruit, which you can use for solving various environment puzzles.

The PlayStation blog has a nice write-up of the game by developer, Vitamin-G, which should give you a good idea of the kind of game this is. You can grab The UnderGarden off the PlayStation Store for $9.99. The game is also available on Xbox Live (800 Microsoft points) and PC via digital ($9.99).

The post The UnderGarden Blooms On PlayStation Network appeared first on Siliconera.

Atari are publishing another Ghostbusters game, but unlike 2009’s big-budget Ghostbusters: The Video Game, this one is a digitally-able multiplayer-focused affair.

Ghostbusters: Sanctum of Slime is another addition to the long line of isometric multiplayer games like X-Men Legends, Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light, or even Diablo. It’s a four-player game set in New York and has you taking on the role of a rookie addition to the Ghosbusters team once again.

Ghostbusters: Sanctum of Slime is being developed for PC, Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network and is slated for a Spring 2011 release.

The post Ghostbusters Hiring For Multiplayer Busting In Ghostbusters: Sanctum of Slime appeared first on Siliconera.

Bent on reviving their entire 2600 catalog, Atari announced a re-imagining of Yars' Revenge.

Just in case you aren't familiar with the shooter this is Yars' Revenge circa 1980s.

And this is Yars' Revenge in 2011.

As you can see from the trailer, the new Yars' Revenge has an anime art style and a story. The nameless Yar in the trailer is out to destroy the Qotile, an empire that brainwashed the Yar. She was freed from control after being shot down and rescued by Bar Yargler. The story appears to be a core element in the game because Yars' Revenge has multiple endings.

I'm more curious to see what kind of shooter this is going to be. Atari says Yars' Revenge has local co-op, but haven't released any details about the gameplay. Killspace Entertainment, a studio staffed with former Obsidian and Pandemic employees, is handling the new Yars' Revenge.

The post Three Decades Later Yars’ Revenge Gets An Anime Facelift appeared first on Siliconera.

You might recognize Krome Studios as the team that developed the Wii, PlayStation 2 and PSP versions of Star Wars: The Force Unleashed for Lucasarts. Their next publishing deal is with Atari, who are publishing Blade Kitten on PC, Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network.

If you're late to the party (like we were...), you might want to watch the trailer above to get a feel for what the game's like. And if you already know enough and the idea of suiting your catgirl up in different outfits appeals to you, you might be better off looking below.

In addition, we can confirm Blade Kitten also features a Ty the Tasmanian Tiger costume. Ty was one of Krome's earliest projects and was published by Electronic Arts.

Just don't expect Kit to be topless. She looks like a kangaroo inside the outfit, with only her face showing.

The post Blade Kitten Pays Homage To Ty The Tasmanian Tiger With Costume appeared first on Siliconera.

In 2009, a publisher named DTP Entertainment released a fantasy role-playing game named Venetica for the PC, developed by Deck13, the developers of the Ankh games.

The story was based in a sixteenth century-styled world where death is a physical being, and revolves around Necromancers. Venetica's protagonist is Scarlett, the daughter of Death. While the game was also initially announced for the Xbox 360, we weren't quite sure who would be bringing it over.

Now, a GameFly listing reveals that Atari are going to be bringing the game over to the console side on January 6th, 2011.

The post Fantasy RPG Venetica Coming To Consoles appeared first on Siliconera.