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XBLA’s Summer of Arcade Kicks Off Next Week
Xbox Live’s annual Summer of Arcade is almost upon us with the first game, the action RPG Bastion, ready to kick start this shindig on July 20th. Last year brought us fantastic games like the gloomy puzzle platformer Limbo and Tomb Raider: Guardian of the Light and this year shaping up to be even better. Like last year we have five very different arcade games, ranging from god sims to strategy games, so there’s bound to be something for every type of gamer.
Last year’s reward for purchasing every game under the Summer of Arcade banner was a bundle of Microsoft Points, but this year thing’s are being handled a little differently. Now, if you buy every game you’ll get Crimson Alliance for free when it releases in September. It’s essentially Torchlight with four player co-op, so if that’s your thing and you have $70 to spare on five arcade games, it’s a pretty worthy bonus. Head past the jump for the full list of games, their prices, and what they’re all about. Bastion (July 20 – 1200 Microsoft Points)
Take control of a character known as The Kid, who is thrust into a world that has literally collapsed around him. He must now construct a safe haven and build a new world from the remnants of the past. The game features lush and imaginative artwork as well as an innovative reaction system that responds to your actions in real time throughout the adventure.
From Dust (July 27 – 1200 Microsoft Points)
Immerse yourself in a world as exotically beautiful as it is dangerous! Control the destiny of a primitive tribe against the backdrop of a world in constant evolution—a universe where mighty Nature reclaims what is hers, and your mastery of the elements is your people’s only hope of survival …
Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet (August 3 – 1200 Microsoft Points)
Experience a captivating adventure set in a unique, rich and insanely twisted world, blending exploration, intense shooter action, and puzzle-solving with gorgeous visuals and rich story telling in a Hollywood-quality presentation. Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet draws you into an epic journey full of surprises, danger and wonder.
Fruit Ninja Kinect (August 10 – 800 Microsoft Points)
The worldwide gaming phenomenon Fruit Ninja has now arrived for Kinect! Your arms are now blades, and the epic battle against the world’s most delicious produce is just beginning. Fruit Ninja Kinect is an amazing evolution of the slice-em-up genre created by Halfbrick, using next-gen power for the juiciest combat ever. Fruit Ninja Kinect includes all the action you know and love with precision control — along with special features exclusive to Kinect.
Toy Soldiers: Cold War (August 17 – 1200 Microsoft Points)
The Cold War is decided when eighties-era action toys come alive and wage war! Toy Soldiers: Cold War blends intense first person combat with addictive action strategy, whether you’re scrapping solo or jumping into the fray with friends.
Sam Neill, the New Zealand actor best known for his role in 1993’s Jurassic Park, has passed away this week at 78 years old. In a statement shared on Neill’s Instagram page this morning, the actor’s family said that his passing was “sudden and unexpected.”
Neill had been diagnosed with a rare blood cancer in 2022, but stated the following year that he was in remission. The family notes that he “remained cancer free” at the time of his passing.
The family statement reads, “It is with immense sadness that the whānau of Sam Neill share the news of his passing on Monday 13th July, in Sydney Australia. Sam was surrounded by family and passed with the dignity that has characterised his whole life. The loss was sudden and unexpected but blessed by the fact that Sam remained cancer free.
“They would like to express their deepest gratitude to the staff at St Vincent’s Private Hospital for their incredible care. More details will be shared later, but for now, on behalf of the family, we ask that you respect their privacy as they navigate this immeasurable loss.”
In addition to his iconic role as Dr. Alan Grant in the original Jurassic Park and the sequels Jurassic Park III and Jurassic World: Dominion, Sam Neill left an indelible mark on the horror genre with memorable roles in Andrzej Żuławski’s Possession, The Omen: The Final Conflict, John Carpenter’s In the Mouth of Madness, and sci-fi horror favorite Event Horizon.
Sam Neill’s vast resume in film and television began in the early 1970s and also includes the films Sleeping Dogs, Enigma, The Good Wife, A Cry in the Dark, Dead Calm, The Hunt for Red October, Memoirs of an Invisible Man, Hostage, The Jungle Book, Snow White: A Tale of Terror, The Horse Whisperer, Bicentennial Man, Daybreakers, Escape Plan, and Thor: Ragnarok.
Sam Neill is survived by his four children and eight grandchildren.
Steven Spielberg said in a statement to Variety, “I owe a debt of gratitude to Roger Donaldson, Gilliam Armstrong, Graham Baker and Phillip Noyce for casting Sam Neill in the roles in which he was so brilliant that brought him to my attention and led to his playing Dr. Alan Grant in Jurassic Park. Sam was exceptionally collaborative. It was a stretch for him to play a character who acted as though children were messy and smelly because this was the opposite of the loving father he was to his children. I adored making all the Jurassic movies with him.”
Spielberg adds, “Along with Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum, we will always have our Jurassic family and Sam will never be forgotten by us or his many millions of fans around the world.”
Sam Neill in ‘Event Horizon’
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