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"Plants vs. Zombies" has become one of my MacBook gaming mainstays, but I can't help but think that it should expand beyond the PC computing world. Thankfully I'm not alone! In an interview with Kombo.com, Garth Chouteau, PR guru of Popcap, expounded on the odds of seeing "PvZ" on other platforms:

"'Peggle' for XBLA is a good example of a game that we took that was popular on the PC and we spent probably twice as long as anyone else would have figuring how to make that game really good for Xbox and Xbox Live Arcade, and I think you will see that with 'Plants Vs. Zombies'--I don't know the exact order in which that game will make its way onto other platforms, but it's certainly been successful enough, quickly enough, that we're looking at other platforms and deciding where we'll take that game next..."

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Tags peggle, plants vs. zombies, popcap

There aren't too many ways to describe the launch of "Battlefield 1943" other than clusterf*ck, so we'll just go with that. I played right when the game launched with little-to-no problems, but once more and more people starting signing on the servers quickly hit capacity and everyone was just left helplessly hitting "Join Game" with little to no effect. Last night at around 11PM EST things seemed to get more manageable, I was able to get into a game with friends on my first try, but that first day was a mess.

Despite all the issues, a lot of people still played that first day. According to EA's ongoing forum post detailing the tech efforts to get the game fixed, 29.45 years (or 258,153.19 hours) of gameplay were experienced. Hopefully that doesn't count the time you spent sitting the menu.

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Tags battlefield, battlefield 1943, ea

I've spent around six hours with "Batman: Arkham Asylum," but embargoes prevent me from going beyond the first two, so you'll have to just deal with it. What I can say is that it's almost surprising that no one has managed to do a "Batman" game that comes close to this. "Arkham Asylum" is, in just about every way, a fanboy's wet dream. Tons of familiar faces, nerdy in-jokes, voice actors from the beloved cartoon series and gadgets up the wazoo. It really is a quintessential Batman experience, compiling what people love about the franchise in one easy-to-digest package.

The Basics
The game kicks off with Batman hauling the Joker into Arkham Asylum. Within short order things go very wrong and the Joker basically takes full control over the facility. It's up to the Dark Knight to figure out what the Joker's up to, exploring the depths of the massive asylum, battling classic villains and culling the environments for clues.

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Tags batman, batman: arkham asylum

Today's Lunchtime Twitter Poll is not just about having your name in (blog) lights, it's also about getting a free game. The developer of "Droplitz," Blitz Games, has donated 3 XBLA codes of their game to giveaway, so my three favorite submissions will have some gravity-related puzzle antics to keep them busy this weekend.

Today's question: What video game super villain do you most identify with? For me it's easy: The sentient watermelon from "Stinger." But, um, a dude version? Can't say I remembered the lipstick and coquettish eyebrows back when I played this on NES. And now, for the winners!

DeadlyCyclone @multiplayers The eye monster in Altered Beast, because sometimes you just need some eyedrops. I would be angry too with that many dry eyes. [Ed. note: For dry, red eyes, Clear Eyes is awesome. Ben Stein says so.]

feitclub @multiplayers Alec from GoldenEye, because if I was 006 I'm sure I'd get sick of 007 as a coworker after a few years. He's smug and a drunk.

zerobxu @multiplayers Video game villain I most identify with: Mr. Stay Puft - a bald, fat, gooey, clumsy, burned-up mess of an individual.

I'll be direct-messaging the winners with their codes. Thanks to everyone who submitted and check back regularly, as I'll try to do giveaways in the LTP from time to time!

Tags drolitz, stinger

Last night XSeed showed off some of their upcoming titles. One of them was "Ju-On," a game based on the moderately popular horror franchise, "The Grudge." Yes, it features meowing children en masse.

It's also extremely judgmental. Depending on how you play through this "haunted house simulator," you'll be graded on two meters: Scare Level and Sissy Level. The game will track how quickly you progress through the game, so if you're in there, charging ahead, knocking down Japanese children with ease, your Scare Level will go up. If you're in there, cowering like Sarah Michelle Gellar in the corner? Boom, Sissy Level.

Not only that, but the game will give you a humiliating description of how you played. Here's a sample, quoted directly from the game:

Your fear level: A total wuss. That's what you are, Zero courage. Zero guts! Why don't you lock yourself in your bedroom and write poetry or something?

Burn! Take that, Yates!

Tags ju-on: the grudge

After a short but impressive debut a few weeks ago, "Worms" is on the verge of release for the iPhone. After a vague "It's not long now..." message from developer Team 17, I checked in with Martyn Brown, the studio head, who confirmed that the game is, indeed, in Apple's hands.

Certification could take as long as a couple weeks, or as little as a few days, so it's hard to say when we'll be exploding sheep on our subway commute, but you can be sure you'll know right around when we do.

For clarification, though, that nifty multi-screen option for multiple iPhones, pictured above, was totally an April Fool's gag. Awesome...but fake.

Tags worms

Team 17 just revealed "Alien Breed Evolved" to the world today, showing the Unreal-powered, Aliens-inspired, top-down shooter in all its glory. I actually played the game way back at GDC, but I've had to remain hush all this time. The pain, the anguish!

In a lot of ways, the gameplay of "Alien Breed Evolved" doesn't really differ all that greatly from the ancient Amiga game it's based on. It's still a top-down shooter (albeit from an isometric perspective) wherein you fight a whole bunch of aliens on a ship filled with dead people. Even in its early state months ago, the game still looked very slick, on par with the best-looking downloadable games on XBLA or PSN right now. The engine has a lot to do with this.

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Tags alien breed, alien breed evolved

Xbox.com's Major Nelson spread the word today on what games would be included as part of Microsoft's Summer of Arcade, as well as their prices and release dates. Without further ado:

July 22nd - "TMNT: Turtles in Time Re-shelled" (1200 MS Points/$15)
This seems a little steep, considering it's really just the old game with updated (albiet very swank-looking) graphics. If I recall, the original adventure took about 2 hours to complete and doesn't exactly have the level of depth as, say, "Bionic Commando Rearmed," which released at 800 MS points.

July 29 - "Marvel vs. Capcom 2" (1200 MS Points/$15)
"Street Fighter 2 HD Remix Extreme Ultra Megamix" had a lot of value and great netcode, so I feel like this is in-line with what we've come to expect for a $15 game. After all, there are dozens of characters and there's that terrible soundtrack to look forward to!

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Tags marvel vs. capcom 2, shadow complex, splosion man, tmnt: turtles in time re-shelled, trials hd

After a Twitter-related slip-up yesterday, EA has gone ahead and officially announced that "Command & Conquer 4" is on the way.

According to an exclusive Q&A with GameSpot, "C&C 4" will focus on "Kane's Plan," whatever the heck that is, and why he's been such an a-hole all this time.

It'll also takes some cues from "WarCraft 3" and "Warhammer Dawn of War 2," introducing RPG elements that will, presumably, allow you to max out your hypnotized squids to do your bidding even more effectively. Oh wait, that's the other one.

There's a lot of info in that interview, so check it out if you're looking for a bit more meat about the forthcoming release.

Tags command & conquer, command & conquer 4, ea

My iPhone has gotten me out of a lot of jams. Like the time my subway got stuck underground for 30 minutes. Or when the doctor's office was full. Or when I was in a meeting about the best times to have meetings. Few things in the history of the world have curtailed the spread of boredom like the iPhone. Personally my go-to "I'm bored" game is a match-three with the ridiculous moniker of "Smiles." It's polish, smooth and oddly compelling. But I put it to you guys! What iPhone game do you guys play to kill time?

nickchester @multiplayers Haven't had an iPhone/iPod Touch for long, but Drop7 is a simple, polished, addictive drug.

Lisa_Mason @multiplayers I have no shame, so I'll admit publicly that my weapon of choice is often Yahtzee. But I'm pretty good at it!

filthyvillain @multiplayers I have to go with paper toss, but zombieville USA is also really addictive.

JohnLHardin @multiplayers Jelly Car. Simple concept, maddeningly difficult.

mescalineeyes @multiplayers geoDefense made me miss my subway stop. more than once.

Cronotriggers @multiplayers Zenonia. 16-bit action-adventure goodness. Only game to get me to stop playing Peggle:)

Oh, and exciting news about tomorrow's Lunchtime Twitter Poll! I'm gonna choose my top 3 submissions (based on cleverness/awesomeness) and send you each a code to download a free copy of "Droplitz" for XBLA. Sorry, only 360 versions available this time, but we'll try to mix it up in the future.

Tags twitter