Twisted Pixel: A PAX 10 Success Story

So with PAX fast approaching I thought it might be fun to cover my favorite PAX 10 success story. For those of you not familiar with the PAX 10 every year the people who run PAX (Penny Arcade Expo) chose 10 independently developed games to showcase as part of the expo. In 2008 one of those games was The Maw from a then little know developer by the name of Twisted Pixel. Thanks to that choice the game became kind of a media darling and was covered by pretty much every gaming outlet out there.

When The Maw was released in January of 2009 it was met with an impressive amount of hype for a game on the then fledgling Xbox Live Arcade service. The Maw if you haven't played it was an incredibly cute and whimsical game that managed to funny and challenging all at the same time. The player controlled a small blue alien who in turn controlled a larger purple alien with one hell of an appetite. I know it sounds different, and it is. That is what makes it worth playing even now. If you happened to have missed it the first time give The Maw a shot and download the demo.

The following year Twisted Pixels next game was part of the Summer of Arcade program for Xbox Live Arcade. 'Splosion Man was immediately hailed by everyone as the platformer everyone had been waiting for. It took a simple one button control scheme and turned it into one of the most challenging games to have ever been released on the 360. Splosion Man manged to mix the accuracy needed in Super Mario Brothers with the speed and twitch reflexes needed in a game like Sonic, and what came out of it was pure gaming joy. Are you starting to see a pattern yet? Yep, go get it if you haven't already.

After they finished working on 'Splosion Man Twisted Pixel started work on a game with more scope. And in fitting fashion they announced Comic Jumper at PAX in 2009. By this time Twisted Pixel had built a big following with the PAX faithful and it quickly picked up steam on the show floor as well as across the gaming media. Over a year later Comic Jumper was released as part of Microsofts Game Feast and sold very well. The game followed Captain Smiley and his costumes smart-ass star logo through four comic book eras. The game is easy enough to explain, it is a bullet hell side-scrolling platformer.

If you know your video games then you know that the game isn't as easy to play as it is to explain. It is a game that is not for the faint of heart. It will punish you over and over again. Here is the catch, you will most likely enjoy every minute of it. Thanks to the fun characters and worlds.

So what would the creative minds at Twisted Pixel think of next? Well, on July 13^th, they decided to riff on Namco and Ms 'Splosion Man was released on Xbox Live Arcade and has managed to bring all the fun of the first game with a lot more difficulty and A TON of pop culture references to boot. I haven't finished this one yet, but I am having a blast with it so far. This one is a must have for anyone that considers themselves a gamer. The same tight controls as the first game with a lot of added attitude and fun. You don't want to miss this one.

So what do you do after you have essentially conquered Xbox Live? Move on to retail! That is exactly what Twisted Pixel is doing with their next release, The Gunstringer. It was announced recently that this new Kinect title, that has players controlling a gunslinging marionette with just hand gestures, will be the developers first retail boxed release. I haven't got my hands on this one yet but hopefully it will live up to the legacy that Twisted Pixel has built. I'm sure they will be showing it off at the place where is all started 4 years ago, at PAX.

As always you can leave feedback in the comments or hit me up on twitter, @Jlove89. Also feel free to click the assorted social media thingys below to help spread the word. Thanks!

One of the Best Shows You May Not Be Watching

So I have been shirking my responsibilities to this blog lately and for that I say, I am sorry. In my defense it is the slowest month of the year for game news and summer TV shows are just getting rolling. That's my defense, but it's not the reason I haven't been keeping up. I have been watching every episode of In Plain Sight I could get my hands on.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the show its a buddy cop show. I know, done a million times. What has hooked me so completely is the slightly overwritten main characters, who still manage to be extremely endearing and the true issues of human weakness the show manages to delve into.

So the basic setup is Mary (Mary McComack) and Marshall (Frederick Weller) are US Marshals who work in witness protection. The basic outline for the show is that each episode follows one person or group of people that are placed into WitSec. Although Mary is by far the main character here, the roles of Marshal, Stan (Paul Ben-Victor), Jinx (Lesley Ann Warren) and Brandi (Nicole Hiltz) are all important in understanding her character motivation. And the very strong performances of them all only help to cement this show on my must watch list.

Mary McCormack is brilliant in this role. She is adept at playing the snarkiness the role requires with just right pinch of disdain. She pulls it off with perfectly timed humor and off the cuff one liners that truly brings the audience closer. While Weller brings a level headed straight man to balance McCormacks antics spouting literary quotes and useless facts as he goes . Warren who plays Marys' mother and Hiltz who plays her sister manage to help explain the antics in the first place. Which brings us to Ben-Victor who manages to play a father figure to all while still managing to bring a playfulness to the part. Overall the casting and writing for each is spot on and I enjoy every minute of banter between them.

Now, if you've ever watched a show on USA you know that their “Characters Welcome” tag line isn't just a tag line. They pride themselves on over the top characters and over the top story lines. I watch Psych for exactly that reason. But In Plain Sight brings something to the table I have not noticed on the network before. Through, what I now consider, some of the best writing on television, they manage to bring the viewer into a new life with new people that I genuinely become engaged with each and every episode. Each show brings with it a new witness and the ingenious part is they all bring very different outlooks and baggage into the program. It is those differences that make each episode different with all new emotions and motivations at play. My hat is off the writing team for managing to make the witnesses just as big a part of the show as any other character despite the fact we see them for an hour and then they are gone.

So, in short, I wasn't watching In Plain Sight, and I am trying to make sure that no one else is making that mistake. It may turn out to not be your thing, but please just give it a shot. The first three seasons can be found on Netflix streaming service and the current season is available on Hulu Plus.

One more time, I am sorry for the time away. I hope you will post this to your Facebooks or Twitters or that new Google Plus thing that I still don't have an invite to (hint). As always you can follow me on Twitter @Jlove89. Thanks again for reading!