XBLA is packed to the brim this week with three full releases landing on the Xbox 360's download service. All told, we have Gin Rummy, Shred Nebula, and Pirates vs Ninjas Dodgeball. One of them is a wacky sports game, one is a space shooter, and one is a card game. See if you can guess which is which! Failing that, you could always just watch the latest episode and find out if any of these are worth your time and money.

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It's time for a special Friday Fanswag boys and girls. We've gotten our hands on five redemption codes for Shred Nebula from CrunchTime Games. Not only that, but we've scored five CrunchTime T-shirts to go along with each copy. In case you haven't noticed, CrunchTime has a sweet logo. Even if you don't know who the folks at CrunchTime are, you'll be proud to wear their shirt. It just so happens that Shred Nebula is a nice space shooter with deep play mechanics and online dogfights, so it's win-win, really. To enter:

• Leave a comment on this post telling us about your favorite space battle.
  
• Only one comment will be accepted per person. Posters of multiple comments will be disqualified. We'll accept entries until 5:00PM, Eastern Time, Friday, September 5th, 2008. You must be at least 18 years old to enter. This giveaway is open only to residents of the U.S. and Canada (excluding Quebec).
  
• Later today, we'll pick five winners via a random drawing.
• Five winners will each receive a redemption code for Shred Nebula on XBLA and a CrunchTime Games T-shirt, worth a total of $25.
  
• Complete giveaway rules can be found here

It was once rare for Xbox Live Arcade to receive two games in a single week. Heck, it was once rare for XBLA to receive one game in a single week. And here we are, getting three in one week. All told we have Pirates vs Ninjas Dodgeball, Shred Nebula, and Gin Rummy. So, we've got a party sports game, a space shooter and a card game. The only question now is whether or not anyone will want to open their wallents after the veritable treasure trove of games that dropped in August. Both PvN Dodgeball and Shred Nebula will set you back 800 Microsoft Points. Gin Rummy is a mere 400. All three are now available on Marketplace for your perusal.

This week on Xbox Live Arcade we get not one, not two, but three new games. Lined up in a row -- like so many ducks -- we have:

• Shred Nebula (800 / $10)
• Pirates vs Ninjas Dodgeball (800 / $10)
• Gin Rummy (400 / $5)

Shred Nebula is a space shooter that utilizes strafing mechanics instead of the twin-stick format we've become used to in games like Geometry Wars. It also boasts online dogfights for 8 players. Pirates vs Ninjas Dodgeball is ... um ... dodgeball. It now sports three different gameplay modes -- in addition to the single-player story mode -- and can be played by up to 8 players. Finally, there's Gin Rummy, which is ... Gin Rummy. It supports 4 players online and contains six different versions of Rummy.

Will any of these wind up on your digital shelf?




Source -- Shred Nebula on Xbox.com
Source -- Pirates vs Ninjas Dodgeball on Xbox.com
Source -- Gin Rummy on Xbox.com (not live as of this posting)

We don't even know what that means, honestly. What you just read is the nonsensical result of Microsoft deciding to unleash three thematically varied games on Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday. How are we supposed to tie a space shooter, a card game and a meme-based dodgeball game into a coherent headline? Oh, and just wait till you get to the part where we explain what each game entails. Here we go:

The showdown between pirates and ninjas (also, robots and zombies) begins in earnest with the release of Pirates vs. Ninjas Dodgeball, a lighthearted celebration of long-dead cultures and non-fatal projectiles. The game and its 8-player online matches can be had for 800 ($10).

Similarly priced is Shred Nebula, which immediately defies expectations by being utterly devoid of guitar-playing space clouds. In fact, it offers "deep multiplayer space combat" for up to eight players online, along with Adventure, Score Attack and Deathmatch modes.

Finally, there's the online-capable and sufficiently self-explanatory Gin Rummy for 400 ($5). That about does it for this paragraph.

Crunchtime Games has informed us that their upcoming space shooter Shred Nebula will hit Xbox Live Arcade on September 3. Shred Nebula ditches the now ubiquitous twin-stick shooter design in favor of more traditional flight combat controls. Utilizing thrust-based flying and aiming akin to Asteroids and the classic PC title SubSpace, we're hoping for some epic dogfights. With two single player modes and eight person multiplayer matches that CrunchTime head James Goddard equated with character match-ups in the Street Fighter series, Shred Nebula at least represents something different. On XBLA that's definitely not a bad thing.

Another omni-directional shooter will allegedly make its way onto XBLA this September, as CrunchTime Games has announced Shred Nebula is ready to start blasting away next month. The developer tells Gamespot that the title will release Sept. 3 for 800 MS points ($10).

Considering CrunchTime has gotten excited before about a release date that never occured, we're just going to put some brakes on and wait for Microsoft to set a date before the release is deemed official. Check out some video after the break to see what makes Shred Nebula different from all the other top-down shooters available on XBLA.

So after some delays to the project's release, Shred Nebula is finally getting some of its marketing going. With so many twin stick shooters out these days most gamers (understandably) have some reservations about playing more games like them. While it isn't exactly the same as playing the game, videos of gameplay definitely give a much better idea of what the game is really about than just descriptions and screen shots. So for those out there who are looking for something a little more than just words and static images, check the video. To our eyes it looks like s more substantial and traditional take on Geometry Wars and Phoenix. Oh, and the music sounds good too.

[Via Gamerbytes]

First, we need to apologize to you guys. When we received an email from Crunchtime staff that told us that Shred Nebula had grabbed an open release slot and would be releasing July 16th we jumped at the chance to tell you. Unfortunately it seems that there was some word from the higher reaches of Microsoft and plans changed. And changed fast.

Whether or not that had anything to do with other current events, no one can really say. And while Shred Nebula is back to having no official release date, we'll be sure to keep you informed about the latest happenings with the title. It's really too bad, unless there's something Microsoft has up it's sleeve we're back to *shudder* Coffeetime Crosswords as next week's XBLA release.

[Via Press Info, Thanks very much for the clarification guys!]

Oh Coffeetime Crosswords you are a funny, funny game, but are certainly not the kind of release we want to see during the week of E3. Thankfully an email came that ended our apprehension. Having been flying under the radar a bit this year, Shred Nebula has no official date will actually be hitting the Live Arcade on July 16th. For the calender challenged that's an unknown day of the week next Wednesday.

The top-down shooter may appear to be just another twin-stick game but it actually has roots in both Asteroids and, believe it or not, Street Fighter. With a concept like that, and the promise of large free-roaming space environments we're willing to give Shred Nebula a good portion of our time when it's released during the busy week next week.


[Via Press Info]

We recently got a chance to talk with James Goddard of CrunchTime Games, creators of the upcoming Xbox Live Arcade game Shred Nebula. A shooter of a different sort, Shred Nebula is attacking the shooter genre from a different angle than all the Geometry Wars clones (which are really RoboTron clones anyway) to give gamers a new experience. We discuss how Goddard is using his experience developing for the Street Fighter series to inject fighting game elements into Shred Nebula. Check out the interview for some exclusive details on the game as well as a look at what CrunchTime games is all about. We've also got some great screens of the game, many of which are new or exclusive to X3F. Read on for the full interview.

Many PC gamers out there likely have fond memories of a simple space shooter by the name of SubSpace. The game tasked players with flying around large 2D maps and engaging in dogfights with other players. The different weights, speeds, and weapons of each ship assured a different play experience every time, and a high degree of skill was necessary to effectively strafe your enemies and to utilize the secondary weapons.

If SubSpace froths up some teary-eyed nostalgia deep inside, you should probably keep an eye on Shred Nebula, and XBLA title from CrunchTime Games. In a recent preview on GameSpot, CrunchTime head James Goddard notes that much inspiration was drawn from SubSpace in the creation of Shred Nebula, including multiple ships with different abilities and the similar flying mechanics. In other words, this isn't another omni-direction shooter like Geometry Wars. With guns mounted on the front of your ship, precision flying takes precedence over an itchy trigger finger. Right now, we don't know much more about it, except that it's confirmed to be priced at 800 MS Point when it releases in early 2008. Hit the "read" link for the full preview at GameSpot.