And it shows, Marble Blast Ultra is second only to Geometry Wars in sales, through March 2006.
The future for indie developed games looks spectacular, with titles such as RoboBlitz, HoopWorld, Novadrome, Cloning Clyde, Heavy Weapon, Totem Balls, Small Arms, and Mutant Storm Empire.
Some of these games even make use of the Unreal Engine, technology used in many big budget games.
More Exposure, Respect
With the current set of games on XBLA, and the 30 or so announced games set for launch in 2006, you would think more people would take notice. It saddens me that that these releases do not see the attention that the (much) more expensive retail games get.
The simple fact is that these games give us as much, if not more, enjoyment than games from EA or Activision, for example.
Xbox Live Arcade games cost less to produce, cost less to purchase, and are being enjoyed by both casual and hard-core gamers alike. It is no wonder we are seeing such great games on the Arcade. My only wish right now is to see another Ricochet.
Microsoft is also coming around to the fact that they have a "killer app" on their hands. They need to do a better job on the public relations side however, because they are obviously doing amazing things on the development side.
They showed us at E3 that XBLA is front-and-center when it comes to gaming on the 360. Many gamers, myself included, are just as excited about the release of Arcade games as we are about retail ones.
I would not be enjoying my Xbox 360 half as much if it were not for the Xbox Live Arcade.
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