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PAX 08: Torpex talks Schizoid, sales, marketing strategies and XNA development

by Dustin Burg { Sep 2nd 2008 at 3:00AM }

As part of our PAX 2008 coverage, we had a chance to talk all things Schizoid with Torpex Games' founder Bill Dugan and, in the process, we learned a lot. Dugan talked XBLA development, the troubles with marketing Arcade games and the limitations of working with XNA. He also opened up about Schizoid's game sales, their development problems and even an admittance that he wished Schizoid would have sold as well as Braid. It's a rather candid interview and is one that can be read (in its entirety) after the break. Enjoy!

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X3F TV -- XBLA in Brief: Golf: Tee It Up! and Schizoid

by Richard Mitchell { Jul 11th 2008 at 5:00PM }

This is a very special XBLA in Brief ladies and gentlemen. Why? Because this week we take a look at Schizoid, which has a very special achievement in it. The Sploderific achievement, you see, is named after a word coined by our own Dustin Burg! Does that make us biased towards the game? Maybe, but it doesn't hurt that it's actually pretty good. Oh, we also take a look at Golf: Tee It Up!, which is a pretty decent game as well. Watch the latest episode and learn how you too can earn the badge of honor that is the Sploderific achievement.

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XBLA expands with Schizoid and Golf: Tee It Up!

by Dustin Burg { Jul 9th 2008 at 9:30AM }

The Xbox Live Arcade just got two games bigger this morning with the addition of "the most co-op game ever" Schizoid and "the most golfy golf game ever" Golf: Tee It Up! And wouldn't you know that both games are available right this very instant for purchase off the XBLA for a middle-range 800 Microsoft points apiece. How perfect! Also, we don't think we have to remind you that, if you purchase Schizoid and go on the prowl for achievements, you'll inevitably unlock the Sploderific achievement. An achievement whose name was birthed from these sacred X3F blogging grounds. Have fun golfing, have fun being cooperative and (in general) have oodles of fun this XBLA Wednesday.

Gallery: Schizoid (XBLA)

Gallery: Golf: Tee It Up! (XBLA)

This Wednesday: Schizoid and Golf: Tee It Up! tee off on XBLA

by Randy Nelson { Jul 7th 2008 at 3:00PM }

We've been covering Schizoid, the first home-grown XNA game to hit XBLA, since this time last year. Now it's finally ~~blasting~~ bumping its way onto the Marketplace, unique gameplay mechanic in tow. Priced at 800 MS points ($10), the game is entirely co-op centric, tasking players with ramming their ship (or ships, should they feel up to the dual-ship-controlling "Überschizoid" mode's challenge) into enemies of the same color. Play with another Live user or let the CPU control ship two.

Super Stardust HD developer Housemarque brings Golf: Tee It Up! to XBLA ... and an incredible likeness to Sony's Hot Shots Golf franchise to mind. Endless rounds of this golf game for beginners and seasoned vets alike (dare we say it's "golf for everyone"?) will set you back 800 MS points ($10).

Gallery: Schizoid (XBLA)

Gallery: Golf: Tee It Up!

Video: Schizoid, the most co-op game ever!

by Dustin Burg { Jul 7th 2008 at 2:30PM }

With the announcement that Schizoid will be releasing to the XBLA this Wednesday, Torpex just released a set of three new Schizoid gameplay trailers to give future Schizoid enthusiasts a feel for what co-op fun awaits. And with a slogan proclaiming it's the "most co-op game ever", you can expect to rely heavily on your partner's skills or lack there of. You can watch the other two videos after the break including one featuring Razorwire gameplay. Trust, Razorwire is teh hawtness. Some would even go as far as to say it's sploderific.

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Another XBLA twofer: Schizoid and Golf: Tee It Up!

by Dustin Burg { Jul 7th 2008 at 12:30PM }

Hey fanboys, we have some sploderific news to share! This week Microsoft is treating us to an Xbox Live Arcade twofer as Golf: Tee It Up! and the long awaited, highly anticipated and co-op friendly Schizoid make their release to the Arcade this Wednesday, July 9th. Huzzah!

For 800 Microsoft points, you can grab Torpex Games' Schizoid, a cooperative, explosive, color coded adventure featuring 120 levels of craziness, online co-op and an Uberschizoid mode where one player takes command of both ships. Yikes! We don't have to tell you that we're a tad bit excited to play Schizoid, so you can all but guarantee we'll be giving it a test drive this Wednesday and earning the coveted Sploderific achievement. Also releasing for 800 point this week is the cartoonified golfing game Golf: Tee It Up! where eighteen holes of online golfing competition with up to four players awaits. Unfashionable golf shorts not included. Check the screenshots below and drool over the Schizoid greatness.

Gallery: Schizoid (XBLA)

Gallery: Golf: Tee It Up! (XBLA)

Schizoid, Soulcalibur pages appear on Xbox.com

by Justin McElroy { Jun 26th 2008 at 11:15AM }

Our frenemies at Xbox 360 Fanboy have noticed an interesting trend: Pages appear for games at Xbox.com, then they're the next XBLA games released. Seriously, it's happened twice. If we're in for a repeat performance, you can expect fighting classic Soulcalibur and former XNA title Schizoid to appear on the service next week, as pages for both have been discovered on the site.

As developer Torpex has already said Schizoid is due next month, which would lend a little credence to the rumor, though Soulcalibur remains a wild card. The the suspense is all but unbearable, but at least we know it will end Monday when the real additions are revealed.

Source -- Schizoid
Source -- Soulcalibur

Gallery: Schizoid (XBLA)

Gallery: Soulcalibur (XBLA)

Prepare for sploderific Schizoid-phrenia this July

by Alexander Sliwinski { Jun 18th 2008 at 7:00PM }

The sploderific XBLA game Schizoid will release in July according to developer Torpex Games. Judging by the latest image in the gallery below, the co-op omni-directional ~~shooter~~ knock-into-er appears to have been cleaned up quite a bit since we last saw videos back in December. Guess we'll just have to wait another month to find out how significant the upgrades are.

Gallery: Schizoid (XBLA)

Torpex confirms Schizoid will release this July

by Dustin Burg { Jun 18th 2008 at 3:30PM }

Hot on the heels of a fresh batch of screenshots being released, we just got absolute confirmed word straight Torpex Games that the highly anticipated co-op Xbox Live Arcade shooter Schizoid will be releasing to the XBLA sometime this July. W00t! W00t! W00t! That means that Schizoid now has a thirty-one day release window for when we can experience co-operative madness. We can't contain ourselves, so we're saying it again ... W00t! W00t! W00t! Thanks for the confirmation Torpex, we know commitment is hard for you.

Oh, and sploderific! (thanks for reminding us Azshros)

New Schizoid screens and still no release date

by Dustin Burg { Jun 17th 2008 at 12:00PM }

Coming from our French pals over at JeuxVideo.com are six new Schizoid screenshots that'll make your inner co-op gaming enthusiast sploderific with happiness! And yes, it is an X3F requirement to bring up the sploderific story every time we post Schizoid news. That's just the way it is. You can view all six gorgeous new screenshots in the gallery below (is it just us, or has the game's graphics and overall look been greatly improved?) and begin placing your Vegas bets for when we'll see Schizoid release to the XBLA. Because, as you already know, we still have no official release date ... bad Torpex Games ... bad, bad, bad.

Gallery: Schizoid (XBLA)

Schizoid's achievements are sploderific!

by Dustin Burg { Jun 4th 2008 at 1:45PM }

Waiting patiently for Torpex Games to announce a release date for upcoming XBLA game Schizoid has been no easy task. The game's release date is fast becoming the joke among the inner XBLA circle as we still have no clue when it'll release even though it was promised for 2007. But good news! Thanks to Achieve360Points, we have a complete list and artwork of Schizoid's achievements including the X3F named Sploderific achievement which we exclusively revealed the artwork for this past March. And, we must say, we're loving what Torpex did with the achievement art. It's visually delicious! But ... uhh, now that we have the achievements and all, uhh ... can we have Schizoid?

[Thanks, iHomer]

Exclusive: Schizoid's Sploderific artwork unveiled

by Dustin Burg { Mar 23rd 2008 at 3:15AM }

As the story goes, one day while writing up some impressions of upcoming XBLA game Schizoid, I ended up coining the term "sploderific" to describe the game's crazy amazing explosions. Don't ask me why, but I figured "sploderific" best represented my feelings towards those wormy explosions. Long story short, Schizoid's developers Torpex Games came across my blog, agreed it was the perfect adjective and they ended up naming one of Schizoid's achievements after my made up word. Crazy, huh?

After we were informed about the use of sploderific as an achievement, we were promised an exclusive first look at the achievement's artwork since, you know, we helped name it. And today, making good on their word and with their approval, Torpex sent us the finalized and 100% Dustin authorized Sploderific achievement artwork that will appear in final the build of Schizoid when the achievement is unlocked. What are you waiting for? Click towards the break to take in the greatness that is Sploderific's super cool artwork ...

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GDC08: Penny Arcade, Braid, Schizoid and GGBS screenshot blowout

by Dustin Burg { Feb 21st 2008 at 11:30AM }

As part of the whirlwind GDC announcement fest that went on yesterday, we sort of lacked the time and energy to organize all the screenshots we obtained from Microsoft's Summer release Arcade press kits. But we've had our beauty sleep, drank our morning cup of coffee and diligently put together new XBLA galleries and added screenshots to old ones. So, if you take a looksy after the break, you'll see new screenshots galore for XBLA games including Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness, Braid, Schizoid and Go! Go! Break Steady. Enjoy the media as we take a quick break to refill our coffee.

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Schizoid "Sploderific" achievement named by X3F

by Richard Mitchell { Feb 20th 2008 at 9:30PM }

It all began in late 2007 when our own Dustin Burg was so awed by the explosions in Torpex Games' Schizoid that he was forced to invent a new word to describe them. Upon seeing the positively terrific explosions, Dustin combined the terms "explode" and "terrific" to create the perfect word to describe the harmonious combination of explosions and joy. That word is "sploderific." Not long after, we were contacted by Torpex's Bill Dugan, asking us if the company could use our word for an achievement in Schizoid. After a brief and fruitless attempt to work out a royalty system in which Dustin would receive a check every time the achievement was unlocked, we agreed to allow the word's use free of charge.

We caught up with Bill Dugan at GDC today, and we can confirm that "Sploderific" will definitely be appearing in Schizoid. Thus, step one in X3F's plan for world domination is complete. Good work, Dustin. You've made us proud! Stay tuned for our full interview with Bill Dugan coming soon.

Schizoid isn't dead, we have pics to prove it

by Dustin Burg { Jan 20th 2008 at 6:30PM }

Sitting here today, we found ourselves contemplating the existence of the forever delayed and "upcoming" Xbox Live Arcade Schizoid from the crew over at Torpex Games. For whatever reason, we wondered if Schizoid would ever make a release, if 2008 will roll into 2009 without Schizoid just as 2007 went into 2008 Schizoid'less. Then, we came across some recent screenshots that proves Schizoid is alive and well. Alive and well, just not released. So, we threw the new screenshots in their own gallery (after realizing we didn't create one previous, oops) and hope that Torpex will take note. Take note that we care about their co-op XBLA experiment and take note that we're an impatient group who wants a product. Anyway, Schizoid isn't dead ... just so you know.