zuma posts

The new Games For Windows Marketplace web site recently had a number of titles sold for just 99 cents for one day only. Ah, good times. But that promotion is over now. However it doesn't mean that Microsoft is setting down now. Today the site revealed a new week long sale for three well known casual games.

From now until December 16, three of PopCap Games' most popular games are on sale on the Games For Windows Marketplace web site for 25 percent off their normal prices. Bookworm, Zuma's Revenge and the major pop culture hit Plants Vs Zombies will be priced at just $7.49 each for the next week.

Black Friday is fast approaching but some outlets are already breaking out the price cuts early. One of them is PopCap Games who today announced that all of the casual game publisher's downloadable titles will be 50 percent off for the rest of the week.

That means terrifically addictive games like Plants Vs Zombies, Zuma, Peggle and Bejeweled should be almost impulse buys for anyone that loves great PC games. The sale ends on November 29. Keep in mind that this deal does not include bundle and game packs. The company's next major game release, Bejeweled 3, is due for release on December 7.

It's been a huge week for Mac gamers with the launch of the Mac steam client. However, Mac gamers also have a pretty nice sale going on at casual game publisher PopCap Games. While it's not mentioned on their main web site nor on their Twitter and Facebook pages, the publisher has a big sale bundle promotion for Mac versions of several of their games.

You can purchase and download 13 Mac ports of PopCap Games, including Plants Vs Zombies, Bejeweled 2, Peggle, Zuma and more for a mere $49.95. There's no word on when this promotion will actually end so if you are a Mac user you should jump on this quickly

[Via Joystiq]

Casual game publisher PopCap Games has had big success with sequels to their hit games like Peggle Nights and Bejeweled Twist. Today PopCap revealed their plans for yet another high profile game sequel, Zuma. The sequel to the addictive ball-based puzzle game, Zuma's Revenge, is scheduled to be released for the PC and Mac on September 15 for $19.95.

Zuma's Revenge will have 60 new levels, new power ups, new "boss batles" and new gameplay modes. PopCap also promises the game will have three time the resolution of the original Zuma along with support for widescreen monitors and "cool 3-D particle effects". PopCap even hired the highest scorer known in the original Zuma, Rick Fortinm to beta test the sequel. MTV's Multiplayer site has some screenshots from the game.

For decades, Mac owners have had to sigh dispiritedly when assessing their gaming options compared to what has been available for the PC. Development studios like Bungie and Blizzard aside, most gaming houses have always decided to create their games for the larger market share, which have always been PC-based. While there have been successful ports of PC games from studios like Aspyr, these have always arrived much later than the launch of the original versions.

Later, a slew of Mac-dedicated studios appeared on the scene (see last week's MacMonday, which focused on Freeverse) and have proven that not only is it possible to create great games for the Mac, but to be successful at the task. This has helped energize the Mac gaming community and is undoubtedly a good thing, but a recent arrival to the Mac lineup of products has added a new element that ought to be considered. In this post we'll talk about how the iPhone could affect developing games for the Mac.

There is a tendency among the hardcore to think of casual games as the trite, twee younger sibling of more "serious" games -- your Tomb Raiders, your X-coms, your Starcrafts of the gaming universe. This perception stems from the idea that a simple game must be simple to create, and therefore reaches an equally simple audience. This, in turn, relies on hewing to old stereotypes: women and older people don't play games, therefore if that demographic is playing a game, it must be easy, right?

Without trapping ourselves by making our opponent's argument -- after all, the hallmark of the casual game is that it is easy to pick up and learn -- we can instead focus on why it is that hardcore games do not attract that market, and what it is that casual games offer instead. To sum it up in a word, it's depth. But wait, isn't depth what people usually say these games lack? To answer that, we need to revisit what "depth" in games really means.