BossGoji stands in for Aevan this week, and we announce the winner of the Trine giveaway.

Crit or Quit:
BlazBlue, Trine, Prototype, Kirby’s Adventure, The Beatles: Rock Band, and Darkest of Days

Level Builder
This week we break down “world maps” and discuss what games have done them well, which have done them poorly, and what developers can do to improve them in the future.

End Game:
Mixmoff and BossGoji hype up the two games they’re most looking forward to in the coming months: Borderlands and Dragon Age: Origins

James Brooksby, studio head at Doublesix was quoted recently as saying,

“We’re ecstatic at the 3.00 upgrade because not only have our sales gone up 40 per cent since the update but for me personally it’s what I’ve been calling for and looking forward to for a long time.”

Of course the gaming press has decided this means the new look XMB icons must be pushing this sales increase. Instead, what we really have is a developer who is either being a bit foolish, or mildly disingenuous for Sony’s benefit.

If you want to point a finger at what could have caused this sales boom for Doublesix’s Burn Zombie Burn, you need to remember what else has happened since September 1st. PSN game sales should, by all rights, fluctuate in sales numbers along with the fluctuation in sales of the PS3 itself. The new PS3 Slim and the $100 price cuts have resulted in a dramatic uptick in PS3 sales. Isn’t it more likely this is the primary reason Doublesix is seeing more purchasers?

It’s possible that having the new store icons nested in the XMB will increase the sales of games featured. However this particular bump is something that can be attributed to a price change for a complementary good…. the PS3 itself.

Source

“License great music” is obviously highlighted and underlined on Page 1 of Harmonix’s Rock Band playbook. In The Beatles: Rock Band they went nuclear by grabbing the catalog of the most celebrated band in the history of music. With a coup like that, the competition probably would have been content to rest on their laurels, but that’s not how Harmonix does things.

From the redesign of the familiar note bars to the trippy interstellar performing environments this game has presentation perfected. The choice to allow up to 3 microphones so you can sing harmonies was the kind of inspired addition that has made this developer the kings of music games.

But for all that’s right with this game, there’s one glaring omission that simply makes this game LESS fun to play than its predecessors… and the blame can doubtless be laid at the feet of licensing. Read the rest of this entry »

As of September 9th, 2009, the DnD based MMO, Dungeons & Dragons Ebberon Unlimited, has gone from pay to play to free unlimited play.  This is good news in a world of wallet emptying MMO’s that I am sure many gamers around the world are thrilled to hear.  The only downside to the free-to-play MMO is that there is a small micro economy where you will have to pay to unlock certain races, classes and a host of other features by purchasing Turbine points.   If you would prefer not to take the easy route and pay for your upgrades, it is possible to earn your Turbine Points by doing quests and earning rep. within the game.

Another way to enjoy the full experience would be to take part in the monthly subscription program and become a DDO VIP.  The cost is $14.99 per month but it will allow you access to all the content that DDO has to offer.

You can sign up for your free account Here, and join the rest of the world in dice rolling, level grinding, dungeon crawling fun.

ModNation Racers Online Beta has been dated for this December, with access vouchers already available in the LittleBigPlanet Game of the Year Edition.

The second game in Sony’s “Play. Create. Share.” arsenal impressed us at this year’s E3 with it’s impressive track-building system. ModNation Racers promises to usher in a new era of kart racing frenzy in 2010. And just in time, too… I’m looking at you M&M’s Kart Racing.

 Charge up those light sabers and prepare yourself for a battle against the Dark Side.

In a recent announcement by Lucasarts, it has been confirmed that the Jedi Knight series of Star Wars FPS’ers will be coming to Steam sometime next week.  It will include both Jedi Knight’s Mysteries of the Sith and the Dark Forces expansions.  

Direct2Drive is also reporting the release set for September 16th.

Courtesy of FrozenByte we are giving away a free full copy of the 2.5d platforming adventure Trine on Steam! To enter for your chance win just follow 3 simple steps:

1) Register here on Fall-Damage.com to enable you to enter comments on this post
2) Visit our iTunes Store Listing and rate our podcast (preferably 5 stars!)
3) Leave a comment to this post saying you’ve rated our podcast, and you will be automatically entered into the drawing!

On September 17th we will randomly select an entrant as the winner, and announce that winner in the September 18th podcast!

We’re back with Level 2 of Fall Damage, with your hosts Mixmoff and Aevan. Listen to hear how you can win a free copy of Trine!

Crit or Quit:
Battlefield 1943, Sacred 2, Nation Red, Quantz, Osmos, and Time Gentlemen, Please

Patch Notes:
Starcraft 2 pay to play? Left2Dead DLC, Website news, This week’s release calendar

Level Builder
This week we break down “character creation” and discuss what games have done it well, which have done it poorly, and what developers can do to improve them in the future.

End Game:
Mixmoff and Aevan give their picks for what retro games should get remade on modern consoles.

Fall Damage: Level 2 – The Phat Loot Show

If you’re in the mood for a good bargain, head over to Steam and check out Braid. 

It’s on sale this weekend, and this weekend only, for just $4.99.  That’s a whole 66% off the original price, folks…and you can’t beat that with a crowbar.

Gearbox released the first episode in their Borderlands-based web series on YouTube today. It’s getting harder to contain my excitement for this game!