The summer of 2010 could well go down as the time when download gaming on the consoles finally came of age. Limbo, Deathspank, Lara Croft: Guardian of Light - the best games this summer have been released via download only. Put down Red Dead Redemption for a minute and think about it - download gaming has ruled this summer. The trend looks set to continue for a little longer too, with Outland unveiled for XBLA and PSN. IGN describe it in their preview:
Outland can best be described as a cross between retro platformers like Prince of Persia or Out of This World and the color-switching of shoot 'em up Ikaruga. You control an acrobatic fellow as he explores a lush, dense jungle. It's a 2D game but there is a great sense of depth in the background with swaying branches and colorful wildlife. The animation for all the characters is really terrific.
Interested? I certainly am, especially by the influence of Ikaruga. As the preview explains:
Our hero can switch between light and dark forms, an ability he'll need to exploit in order to murder the local monsters and avoid sprays of bullets. Just like in Ikaruga, he'll take damage from opposite-colored bullets but will be impervious to those of the same polarity. So if there is a platform you want to get to but it's being blocked by a stream of white bullets, just change to white and you can pass through unharmed. There are instances where you must rapidly switch back and forth to move through multi-colored sprays of bullets, much like Ikaruga.
Sounds good then. But what do you think? Interested? And what about download-only games generally. Do you agree they have never been this good?
