In every neighborhood there’s always that one house that gives out the best candy, and every trick-or-treater rushes to get there first, before all the other kids have claimed the full size Snickers bars or King Size Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. (Screw all those mini candy bars!) This Halloween, in the video game neighborhood, Double Fine and Midnight City are the owners of the house with the best treats. Better yet, there is no supply limitation in this age of digital downloads.

You do need to own a PlayStation 3 or PlayStation 4 to get these goodies, though.

Following the October 28th PlayStation console launch of Costume Quest 2, LittleBigPlanet‘s loveable burlap mascot, Sackboy, will be added to the game in a free post-launch update. Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like Sackboy will be playable in time for Halloween. A specific release date for the DLC hasn’t been confirmed yet, but the press release announcement uses the phrase “in the coming weeks” to give an idea of release timing.

Sackboy will appear as a hidden bonus costume assembled by finding the four necessary materials–a burlap sack, buttons, thread and a whole lot of love. Sackboy’s DIY costume look is adorable while exploring town, but in combat his ‘Little Big Beat Down’ special attack packs a serious punch.

Double Fine and Midnight City are offering an early trick-or-treat surprise this weekend, kicking off Steam pre-orders for the PC/Mac/Linux release of Halloween-themed RPG adventure, Costume Quest 2. Two pre-purchase options are on the table. A payment of $14.99 includes the game and exclusive bonus costumes from the original quest, including the Robot, Unicorn, Eyeball and Pumpkin. Spending five bucks more upgrades to the $19.99 bundle featuring the first Costume Quest and its Grubbins on Ice DLC campaign, plus the same set of four bonus costumes.

In addition to Steam, Costume Quest 2 is scheduled to launch this October on PS3, PS4, Wii U, Xbox 360 and Xbox One. Check out the new gameplay trailer premiering this weekend at PAX Prime in Seattle!

What is it? An old-school action-platformer with a dark atmosphere and storyline inspired by classic monster movies.

Who made it and where can you get it? It has been scientifically proven that this game was developed by Scientifically Proven. It’s available now on Steam and will be coming to consoles at some point. Normally the game sells for $9.99, but until May 24th the Steam version is on sale at a 90% discount. It can be yours for exactly one penny shy of a dollar if you hurry!

How much did we play? In two hours, I died 59 times on the way to clearing six (four main environments and two bosses) of the game’s 15 total stages, according to the level select menu. I also survived for 19 rooms in an attempt at Endless Challenge mode, and put in a good run on the Sewers level in Score Rush.

Any technical concerns or hardware requirements you should know about? As the game recommends in an opening splash screen, “Vanquishing hordes of monsters is best done with a gamepad.” Keyboard controls are supported (with key rebinding), but I followed the game’s instructions, and stuck with the platformer-friendly comfort of a controller. For a short stretch during one level a seam or tear flickered through the center of the background environment like a straight line of static on a TV, but it went away as suddenly as it appeared so I have no clue what it was. Other than that weird blip, performance has been smooth and glitch-free.

Why should you play it?

Blood of the Werewolf is an all-in-one throwback to console 2D platformers of old like Mega Man, Ghosts ‘n Goblins and the original Castlevania (this is not a “Metroidvania”) and classic movie monsters like Dracula, Jekyll & Hyde and Frankenstein. Yes, that means this game can be nightmarishly difficult. While lives are unlimited and level checkpoints come often enough to cut down on the tedium of dying and retrying, the fact remains that this game is not shy about its desire to kick your ass. When you’re not slaying mutant fishmen and rattweilers (half rat, half dog), you’re leaping across crumbling platforms placed over spikes or pools of toxic goo while avoiding fireballs or flying vampire bats, or navigating conveyor belts with crushers or electric shockers hovering above ready to smush or zap you if you fail to properly account for the direction of the conveyors’ spin. A modern health bar system makes clearing a lot of these hazards without loss of life fairly painless, but certain sections with insta-kill spikes or crushers can easily suck away a dozen or so lives in a matter of minutes. One such difficulty spike occurs at the end of the second level, where the stretch run involves free-falling down a zigzagging tunnel lined with horizontal smashers. I think I died at this part somewhere in the ballpark of 20-30 times. It was frustrating (not to the point of hair pulling or controller slamming, but still brutal), but in a way old-school masochistic gamers will find deeply fulfilling.

Of course, the main twist to the game is the shapeshifting protagonist. You play as Selena, a rare living member of the Wolf Clan who is on a path of vengeance after seeing her husband killed and her son kidnapped. While indoors she appears as any regular human, and in this form she can climb ladders, do single-jumps, crouch under obstacles and projectiles, and shoot things with her trusty crossbow. However, when a level leads outside, the shining moonlight reveals her true werewolf form. As a werewolf she is more agile thanks to the ability to double-jump, she is more deadly thanks to vicious bite and claw attacks, and she is imbued with special Blood Powers that enable her to dash, cause ground slam shockwaves, or exchange blood energy (harvested by eating the beating hearts of fallen enemies) for health regeneration. The game isn’t designed to allow for manual shapeshifting, but the levels are well balanced around pre-determined transformation points. The levels are also home to a lot of devilishly placed collectibles and secret rooms containing ability upgrades which you probably won’t find the first time through.

Regarding the game’s prowess as a platformer, the jump timing and response is tight and the overall control feel is very retro with things like pressure sensitive jump height/distance, full mid-air momentum adjustment, and a damage system that causes Selena to knock back and recover with a brief moment of invulnerability, which can actually work to your advantage in the right spots. Sure, getting knocked back can send Selena plummeting to death or back to the beginning of a tricky platform sequence, but in certain situations it can be used as a means to launch past a particular trap or enemy, a trick I’m sure speed runners have already figured out how to exploit. Frankly, the only disappointing part of the game for me so far has been the bosses. I was excited by the idea of facing off against iconic movie monsters, but compared to the rest of the game the battles against The Creature and Hyde were predictable pattern recognition cakewalks. For all my deaths, not a single one came during a boss fight. Hopefully the remaining three turn out to be more interesting.

Parting Thoughts: Blood of the Werewolf is one seriously wicked platformer that proudly measures up to its forebears. I’m mad at myself for putting off playing it for so long (it originally launched back in October of last year), but now that I’ve started I don’t want to put the controller down, even after suffering another couple dozen bloody deaths in a row. On the bright side, waiting until now means experiencing the game fresh at its absolute best. What initially kicked off the current 99-cent sale was a patch that brought the game up to version 2.0. In addition to some tweaks and polish to the gameplay, the update has added speed run leaderboards for the main levels as well as two other side modes, including a procedurally generated see-how-long-you-can-survive Endless Challenge, and a Score Rush which involves collecting crystals and killing enemies to add precious seconds to a ticking countdown clock. From what I’ve played, I am already sold on this game being worth a look at full price. For a buck, you’d be a fool to pass it up.

Disclosure: A free Steam key for Blood of the Werewolf was provided to VGBlogger.com by the game’s publisher.

It’s hard to believe BloodRayne: Betrayal first came out way back in September of 2011. Of course, back then it was exclusive to consoles, leaving PC gamers to miss out on the gracefully gory fun that somehow avoided an ‘M’ for Mature ESRB rating. Until now.

Majesco’s indie label Midnight City alongside Abstraction Games have adapted WayForward’s PSN and XBLA 2D side-scrolling brawler platformer for a new and improved release on Steam. Making mincemeat out of vampires as the sexy dhampir femme fatale is every bit as bloody and brutal as it was years ago, only now the game has tighter controls and re-balanced puzzles and checkpoints.

When I reviewed the console version, my main points of contention had to do with the game’s touchy controls and frustrating difficulty spikes. After replaying the 15 stages all over again on Steam, I am happy to say that both of these issues have been for the most part corrected. The most immediate improvement is in the way Rayne moves. Before, when she would run and stop, momentum would carry her forward into a short slide animation. It wasn’t much, but it was noticeable enough to cause Rayne’s movements to be a bit too loose and twitchy. Abstraction has clipped this animation so that Rayne stops on a dime and is easier to handle with precision through the trickier platforming sequences.

I’m not exactly sure which sections of the game have been re-balanced — I randomly replayed a couple stages on PS3 to make a direct comparison and didn’t notice any difference in checkpoint layout — but I didn’t encounter any of the crazy difficulty spikes that I not so fondly remember from before. I specifically cited stages 8 and 13 in my original review. Those levels are still tough, but this time I managed to clear them without the same hair-pulling aggravation. Perhaps it’s a case of familiarity or simply improved skills/reflexes. Or perhaps something under the hood has been tweaked just enough to make these sections more manageable. I can’t say for certain, I just know that the game feels better on PC.

BloodRayne: Betrayal also takes advantage of the full suite of Steam features, including achievements, trading cards, cloud saves, leaderboards and controller support (this isn’t the type of game I would even think to try to play with keyboard and mouse). Technically, I have encountered a bug that causes the game to run in slow motion when Vsync is turned on. Fortunately, the game’s buttery smooth animation and gothic Disney art style look morbidly delightful without Vsync so I just shut if off.

If you missed BloodRayne: Betrayal back on consoles, don’t miss the chance to sink your teeth into the new Steam version. It’s not a huge game, but spending three to four hours savoring this game’s balletic hack ‘n slash combat is well worth the $9.99 asking price.

Indie studio Beast Games has launched a playable demo for Avalanche 2: Super Avalanche, sequel to the flash game Avalanche. You can play it right in your browser, just click the “Play the demo” button from the game’s homepage at www.superavalanche.com.

Avalanche 2 is an endless climber with a classic platformer feel and some light roguelike RPG elements in the form of lootable power-ups, coins, treasure chests, shops and boss battles. The objective of the game is simply to hop your little marshmallow hero up an endless series of blocks that drop down from the sky and see how high up you can make it without getting squished or falling into the lava that slowly fills the screen from the bottom. Along the way you will pick up gear that will enhance the marshmallow with new abilities, such as a jetpack, ninja headband, pogo stick, cape, and so on.

The demo is supposedly limited to 30 minutes of game time per day, but every time I’ve returned to the site the timer has reset even though my high scores and overall progress continue to be saved. Naturally, the full version will contain more content and features, but the demo is already proving to be super-duper addictive. So far in 10 attempts the best I’ve been able to do is 404 feet, and I just want to keep on playing to try to top my high score.

Try the demo out for yourself and if you like what the marshmallow platformer has to offer give it a Greenlight vote to help get the game on Steam. Avalanche 2 is scheduled to launch in May. Pre-orders are available now for $9.99, with free keys for Desura and Steam to come with all purchases as those versions are released.

This holiday weekend at PAX, publisher Majesco Entertainment announced the formation of a new label created with a focus to promote indie games and help independent developers get their projects released on PC digital download services, PlayStation Network, and Xbox Live Arcade.

This new publishing label is called Midnight City, and they have indie games for everyone. Games with puzzles. Games with balls. Games with werewolves. Games with heroic fruits and veggies. Games with horror. Games with flying things. Name a thing and it’s probably in a Midnight City game.

Midnight City is opening its gates with a roster of 10 indie games under its banner. Continue scrollin’ along for details and screenshots for all 10 games, accompanied by a trailer introducing the complete lineup.

Krautscape (Mario von Rickenbach):

With boutique elevated racing action and impossible bird-like flying cars, Krautscape subverts competitive multiplayer racing by allowing the leading player to actively determine the course and direction of the track – which generates as you play – while the chasing players can take aerial shortcuts by flying off the track to overcome obstacles. But the track is needed to score and to gain speed – the vehicles don’t have any thrusters to accelerate while flying. Three unique multiplayer game modes support nonlinear gameplay and intelligent movement over forcing you to drive perfectly.

VIDEOBALL (Action Button Entertainment):

VIDEOBALL is an electronic sport game that features the best of basketball, soccer, football, old-fashioned shooters, first-person shooters, and real-time strategy games – and it’s all on one screen, for easy spectating, and it controls with just one analog stick and one button. Choose from dozens of unique fields for one-on-one, two-on-two, or three-on-three local or online multiplayer competition, or check out the singleplayer or co-op challenge mode, full of practice arenas meant to turn you into a world champion. If we were sleazes and we were pitching this to Silicon Valley venture capitalists, we’d say “it’s Call of Duty meets Madden meets Wii Sports meets Angry Birds meets NBA Jam meets Bangai-oh,” and they’d ask us, “What’s Bangai-oh?”

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The Bridge (Ty Taylor):

A 2D logic puzzle game that will compel you to reevaluate your preconceptions of physics and perspective, The Bridge is Isaac Newton meets M. C. Escher. Manipulate gravity to redefine the ceiling as the floor while venturing through impossible architecture set in beautifully hand-drawn art in the style of a black-and-white lithograph. This excellent game design, in unison with fantastic visuals and an immersive environment, has garnered The Bridge more than a dozen wins and many more nominations from international independent game competitions, while The Bridge continues to earn more praise and attention from fans and the games media alike.

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Blood of the Werewolf (Scientifically Proven):

You are Selena, a woman hell-bent on avenging her husband’s murder and rescuing her kidnapped son. The catch – Selena is a werewolf and shifts between her human and wolf form when in view of the full moon. Journey through a world filled with the most iconic monsters in pop lore, including the Creature, Hyde, Dracula, the Mummy, and Frankenstein in manic platforming across 15 white-knuckle levels that will test the reflexes of even the most stalwart MetroidVaniaMan.

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Slender: The Arrival (Blue Isle Studios):

In 2012, Mark “AgentParsec” Hadley captivated gamers around the world with Slender: The Eight Pages, a short, experimental game that breathed new life into the horror genre. Slender: The Arrival is the official continuation of the series from the original game creator and the writers behind the Marble Hornets series and the development team at Blue Isle Studios. The Arrival features a brand new storyline, improved visuals, awesome Oculus support, and most importantly, survival horror at its best.

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Organic Panic (Last Limb):

In a world of gushing liquids and destructible physics, can you survive the ultimate food fight? Organic Panic is a co-op action bash’em-up platformer served with a healthy side of puzzles. Help a small band of Fruit and Veggie hero’s armed with magical powers save the world from the Meats and Cheeses with a revolutionary physics engine that lets you break everything, with completely destructible levels and advanced liquids, allowing you to go crazy flooding entire levels with water, lava or acid.

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High Strangeness (Barnyard Intelligence Games):

Inspired by your favorite RPG and action-adventure games of yesteryear, High Strangeness is a hybrid of 8 and 16 bit – it’s a 12 bit adventure! The game’s core ability allows players to switch between 8 and 16 bit worlds and use the generational differences to solve puzzles and explore the universe. Throughout the game your pixel art perspective of the world will be interrupted by visions of watercolor illustrations that shed light on your mysterious surroundings. A hearty chiptune soundtrack by Dino Lionetti and Rich Vreeland backs up the aesthetic of the world and sets the mood for some truly strange happenings.

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Super Rad Raygun: The Lost Levels (Tru Fun Entertainment):

It is the year 198X. Big hair is hot, and the war with the Soviets is colder than a refreshing glass of New Coke. RAD RAYGUN must travel the world fighting communist robots, and save the 1980’s by shooting his way through the decade in a totally fresh, expanded version of the original XBLIG game. SUPER RAD RAYGUN: THE LOST LEVELS pits Rad against a whole new wave of deadly enemies and locations – from the Communist strongholds of the Far East to strategically insignificant islands off the South American coast. But chill out, because Rad has gnarly new weapons, upgrades, and a revamped gameplay engine to help him out. Ultra sharp 144p resolution graphics and 4 unique shades of monochrome off-green bring Super Rad Raygun to life, as only 80’s mobile technology can.

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Grapple (Tuesday Society Games):

Nothing can stop you in GRAPPLE. Go where you please in this 3D platformer that takes traditional design to the next level. As a ball of goo, extend your arm to swing anywhere. Remember how great swinging through Spider-Man 2 felt on the Xbox 1 (note: not Xbox One)? Grapple feels EVEN BETTER! Combine swinging with your ability to travel on any surface or at any angle, and no obstacle can stand in your way. Challenging levels test your skill to move through progressively more complex puzzles. Find out just how far you can Grapple.

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Avalanche 2: Super Avalanche (Beast Games):

Avalanche 2: Super Avalanche is the official sequel to the flash game: Avalanche, a frantic and addictive 2D climbing platformer for the PC. This upgraded version brings new cooperative gameplay for up to two players with special power-ups that help save your partner as you climb to new heights. As you progress, you will be tasked with collecting a variety of power-ups that will help you ascend the ever-changing, and increasingly challenging levels.

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