XBox Live Arcade March\'s \"Block Party\" Priced and Dated

[Anthony Larson]

Every year Xbox likes to celebrate their innovative XBox Live Arcade service with a "Summer of Arcade", a month long event that usually sees the services biggest releases for that year. Well this year things are going to be a bit different for the service as Microsoft is also readying the release of their new "Game Room" service - a virtual Arcade room that your Xbox Avatar can explore like Arcades of old complete with arcade games and machines. Not content to wait on their laurels Microsoft wants to get this new service out sooner rather than later.

So instead of a summer event - Xbox Live Arcade will now have a March Block Party that will see the release of a handful of new anticipated games, including Rare's High Definition port of the Nintendo 64 classic Perfect Dark, all of it capped off with the release of the Game Room to the general public. Microsoft has recently released the prices and dates for the upcoming event.

Toy Soldiers - 3rd March <b>1200 MSP</b> Your army of antique toy soldiers battles it out across five unique maps, all with multiplayer potential. Deploy infantry, pilot zeppelins and fighter planes, or send in the cavalry?whatever it takes to earn victory in this action-packed strategy game.

Scrap Metal - 10th March <b>1200 MSP</b> Use rocket-launchers, flamethrowers and more dastardly tricks to ensure you finish first in more than 60 single-player missions. Or challenge friends to a Destruction Derby plus other superb multiplayer modes in split-screen or across Xbox LIVE.

<a href="http://thevirtualunderground.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/cover.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://thevirtualunderground.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/cover.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a> Perfect Dark Arcade - 17th March <b>800 MSP</b> The celebrated action adventure from Rare, starring Joanna Dark in her landmark first mission. Newly ?re-mastered? in high-definition and upgraded character models, you can play this classic shooter solo, 2-player split-screen or 8-player online.

Game Room - 24th March (Free download) <b>400 MSP dual-platform, 250 MSP single-platform, 40 MSP single play</b> More than 30 arcade classics in their original cabinets can be yours in your virtual game room. Couch Play mode lets you invite friends for two-player challenges at home, but the fun really takes off across Xbox LIVE with leaderboards to aim for.

[Maverick]

Perfect Dark seems like the only worthwhile game in the bunch.

[JD Laukkonen]

Originally Posted by Maverick

Perfect Dark seems like the only worthwhile game in the bunch.

Funny that it's also the only reasonably priced one.

[Maverick]

Originally Posted by JD Laukkonen

Funny that it's also the only reasonably priced one.

Haha, seriously. 1200 for "Toy Soldiers?" Ugh.

[Crimsonpug]

I just don't like that we have to re-buy our Arcade games to get them to work in the game room. Sure the XBLA versions of Pac-man are updates or whatnot - but I shouldn't have to buy it again to get it to work in a virtual arcade.

I think it would be nice if we could buy the game and place it in out arcade... and if we had friends come over and try out that 40msp "quarter" thing on our machines that we would get the profit. Never gonna happen... but it would be cool.

[Randolph]

I hate how with every announced in advance line up, they put the one or two worthwhile games in the bunch dead last to arrive. It's irritating. They know Perfect Dark is the only worthwhile game in the lineup, they know the other two are overpriced garbage. Why beat around the bush? Release Perfect Dark March 3rd, and let the other two digital abortions be forgotten.

[Maverick]

Originally Posted by Randolph

I hate how with every announced in advance line up, they put the one or two worthwhile games in the bunch dead last to arrive. It's irritating. They know Perfect Dark is the only worthwhile game in the lineup, they know the other two are overpriced garbage. Why beat around the bush? Release Perfect Dark March 3rd, and let the other two digital abortions be forgotten.

They've done this before with their summer of arcade promotions. It is what it is, dogg.