The third, and final, "deleted scenes" DLC for the platform-puzzler The Maw will be released next week on the PC and Xbox 360. The final scene, The Speeder Lane, sees Frank and Maw hijack a Bounty Hunter Speeder GTA-style, which eventually leads to an "old school boss fight."

The final add-on from developer Twisted Pixel is priced at 100 ($1.25). The Speeder Lane is set for release on the Xbox Live Arcade next Wednesday, April 29, and for PC via Steam, Greenhouse, and Direct2Drive soon after. We'd hope more Maw content was on the horizon but Twisted Pixel is busy trying to 'spode people in preparation of its next (strange) title.

Speaking to Gamasutra, Twisted Pixel CEO Michael Wilford spoke about the company's recent release The Maw. Specifically, Wilford addresses the game's DLC, two episodes of which are now available. Wilford stated that Microsoft requires Xbox Live Arcade developers to disclose plans for DLC up front and Twisted Pixel decided that extra levels would make sense. He noted further that the company didn't even start development on DLC until the main game had been finished.

This point is of particular importance, as the DLC's "Deleted Scene" label has caused some confusion and ire among gamers. Wilford stated that the deleted scene idea made sense to the team, saying, "We thought it would be cool, but I think some people took it to mean that we intentionally stripped out levels that were 100 percent complete only to sell them as DLC, which is not the case."

When asked about the risks of creating DLC, Wilford said, "The biggest risk that caught us off guard is the public perception that you're trying to rip them off." He went on to say it's arguable that the concept of DLC has enough "negative stigma" that "it's not even worth attempting." There are examples of successful DLC, according to Wilford, but they are relatively few.

[Update: Two episodes -- not just one -- of Maw DLC are currently available.]

Valve wants you to know that Steam, its client for PC gamers, now has support for in-game DLC. The first game to feature DLC through Steam is Twisted Pixel's The Maw, which already has two packs available to Xbox 360 owners. These same two packs, Brute Force and River Redirect, are currently on Xbox Live Marketplace and will be available on Steam by the time you're done reading this sentence.

Xbox Live is a wonderful place. Without it, we would have never discovered diamonds in the rough such as The Maw and Braid. Thankfully, these games are getting the red carpet treatment and rolling out to other platforms, courtesy of Hothead Games.

Hothead games will first bring Jonathan Blow's Braid to Mac gamers everywhere. Also, the company is currently working on getting Twisted Pixel's The Maw to "multiple as-of-yet-unannounced digital distribution platforms and services." Steam, anyone?

We don't have a date yet as to when Hothead will be offering these titles to their respective platforms, but we'll update as soon as we know.

Twisted Pixel Games just announced that The Maw's Brute Force expansion - the first of three "deleted scenes" - will release to the Xbox Live Marketplace this Wednesday, February 18th.

For 100 ($1.25), the Brute Force downloadable content embiggens The Maw experience by adding new puzzles, new cinematics and new characters including the robotic Brute Soldier. We fell in love with the overeating purple blob when it released last month, so it's good to see Twisted Pixel supporting the game with relatively affordable DLC. Inexpensive content is always welcome. Overpriced DLC can continue to stay away.

Major Nelson just released his weekly report on Xbox Live activity for the week of January 26th -- and there really isn't anything out of the ordinary on the list. Call of Duty: World at War reigns supreme on the Live charts, Halo 3 is sitting at a comfortable second, CoD4 at third, Gears 2 at fourth and Left 4 Dead rounds out the top five. As far as XBLA releases go, The Maw and all its purpleness is number one, Castle Crashers number two and (interestingly enough) Worms makes an appearance at the third position.

The full list of Xbox Live activity for retail, XBLA, original Xbox and Community Games is viewable after the break.

Twisted Pixel has revealed plans to release three new levels in the coming weeks for its recently released Xbox Live Arcade title, The Maw. Each level will act as a "deleted scene" from the original leash-devouring vision and include one new achievement per level, at a price of 100 ($1.25) each.

In the level Brute Force, Bounty Hunters have sent in members from their new elite strike force, the Brutes, to stop Frank and Maw. In the River Redirect level, Frank and Maw must change the course of a river to surf past a raging fire. Lastly, in The Speeder Lane level, Frank and Maw are required to hijack a Bounty Hunter Speeder GTA-style and crash it through a blockage to progress. Thankfully, the Brute Force level has nothing to do with reviving an old Xbox "classic." Crisis averted.

No release date for the content has been revealed, but Twisted Pixel notes each level will be released on a different day.

"I like the looks of the business model, but Community Games face[s] the same problem PC web portals do," said Wilford, "which is an open platform and an overabundance of not-so-stellar games." He continues, "we may develop for Community Games at some point, but XBLA is very successful partly because it is a closed and tightly managed portfolio of games." Adding that, with their relationship with Microsoft, they hope to continue "down the XBLA path."

We tend to agree with Wilford. The new Community Games section is a great opportunity for start ups, offers great potential and is generally a good program for up and comers. But the sheer amount of titles and amount of lower quality games tarnishes the program's goal. What say you?

After a week on hiatus, XBLA in Brief is back with a brand new episode. This week, we bring you The Maw, a surprisingly enjoyable action adventure title. Feed Maw all the animals he can stomach (hint: a lot) and watch him grow and gain lots of nifty powers. Oh, and did we mention the game is gorgeous? Yeah, well it is. Check out the latest episode and see if it's for you.

Download the trial version of The Maw from Marketplace.

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Update: According to Major Nelson, FunTown Mahjong is actually supposed to release next week. Yay?

This week, the Xbox Live Arcade is featuring the award-winning independent 3D platformer, The Maw. Developed by Twisted Pixel Games, The Maw features an adorable alien named Frank who is trying to find his way home after a failed kidnapping attempt finds him crash landed on a strange planet. As Frank, players will team up with a hungry purple creature named Maw who can be led around the world on an electronic leash and sent to devour everything in your path. Twisted Pixel promises a "lengthy" single-player campaign, "intense cutscenes" (Read: one of the first is a spoof on Kill Bill) and "cutting edge graphics." The Maw clocks in at nearly 150MB and will run gamers 800 for the full version.

Also, Major Nelson notes that another XBLA release should be on the service today. According to the Major, FunTown Mahjong is supposed to be available now, in all regions except Korea, for 800 but as of this story going live we have yet to see it online.

Download a trial version of The Maw now.

This week's first XBLA release is FunTown Mahjong. Protip: If you wander into a village marked by a big sign that says "FunTown," and the first guy you see tells you that they've only got one game in town, that it's Mahjong and it costs $10 to play it ... then you're not in FunTown. You're in Awfulville, and the Chamber of Commerce has just changed the name.

On the bright side, we're also getting The Maw, a very pretty action-platformer that has us quite intrigued. You can also pick that one up for 800 ($10).

We've got new Castle Crashers DLC coming to Xbox Live Arcade this week for 160 ($2), according to Major Major Major Major (Nelson). As of this writing, no other details were available on his site nor on the Behemoth's blog, but we suspect it's probably the new characters and weapons we heard about in September. Sure, it's not technically a new title, but we'll let them slide this time. After all, it could be worse. As for the week after, you've got The Maw.

The Maw isn't just the pink blob you see in the pic above. It's also the name of an action-platformer that sports some of the nicest production values we've seen in an Xbox Live Arcade title (you can get a sample right here). Developer Twisted Pixel Games has just revealed that we'll be able to see if the gameplay lives up to the graphics and stellar music when the game arrives on Jan. 21.

So, that covers next Wednesday, but we're still wondering what's coming tomorrow.

[Via X3F]