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Southpeak ushers in a new year of Insecticide release confusion (Update: Crackpot comments) 01 Jan, 2010, 16:47 / 7 comments

By Jason


I swear this game is cursed. Head on over to this here quietly added Amazon.com product page for a retail PC version of Insecticide. The listed release date is January 12th and the asking price is $9.99.

As you may know, Insecticide was from the beginning built as a PC game, but the simultaneously developed DS port ended up being finished first. Although a PC retail version was always planned eventually (as evidenced by the PDF manual and all the tentative PC cover art referencing DVD-ROM media), Gamecock decided to put the game out "bisodically" through digital distribution first. As anyone who's been following this game knows, Insecticide fell off the map altogether after Part 1 was released and Gamecock was acquired by Southpeak, leaving us with a complete but heavily scaled down DS version, half of a PC version as a digital download, and 0% of a PC version on a physical disc.

While I would like to think that the Amazon page is a sign that the game is finally seeing the light of day, I wouldn't get my hopes up. Bear in mind that this would not be the first time the PC version of the game had a phantom Amazon product page that ended up meaning nothing. It's also somewhat fishy that this would suddenly materialize mere weeks before the supposed release. We'll keep you posted as always, but don't be surprised if that page conveniently disappears or at the very least turns out to be something different than it seems. Any of you adorable optimists out there though should feel free to pre-order.

Update: I asked Mike Levine of Crackpot Entertainment if he cared to comment on the situation and he got back to me with "We don't know a thing about this." Doesn't bode too well.
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7 Comments

  • syntheticgerbil on 07 Jan, 2010, 04:10…
    The box still says "Part 1." If indeed a release is coming to just get the thing in, why in the world does it still need to be released in two parts?! Especially a part that's already available.
  • Udvarnoky on 07 Jan, 2010, 14:02…
    That box also has the Gamecock logo on it, so I don't know how much stock we can put into the veracity of anything else on it.

    I agree, it would be entirely pointless to go to the trouble of putting the game out on physical disc if it's just going to be Part 1 again rather than the full game. If it does turn out to be the case that that's all Southpeak is doing, my suspicion would be that it's because all the assets for such a release are already in place courtesy of the previous publisher and it won't cost them anything.
  • haydenwce27 on 01 Jan, 2010, 15:56…
    I haven't yet played Part 1 of Insecticide, but I have purchased it from Steam recently and am ready to play it soon. From what I've seen of trailers and gameplay videos on various video websites across the tubes, this game looks really good and it has a sort of Grim Fandango charm about it. I really hope that January 12th will be the release date for the entire game, it'd be very nice to be able to complete the first episode and know that I will be able to play the full game and not get half way through a story and have it cut off at the half-way point. I don't like the idea of buying a Nintendo DS, the crappy gaming console that it is, just to play one game that will be of lower quality anyway. Yes, I do hope that this is a genuine release date.
  • Udvarnoky on 01 Jan, 2010, 16:27…
    I will tolerate no raggin' on the DS, which remains my most played platform of this generation! I think I spent 95% of my holiday break playing Castlevania, Contra 4, Zelda and Bowser's Story. Insecticide was simply a bad fit for it. I think you'll find yourself asking when you play it why they didn't port it to the Wii instead.

    There is indeed a hint of Grim Fandango-ness to Insecticide thanks to the McConnell soundtrack and the Tsaykel-animated cutscenes. Peter Tsaykel, by the way, is Lead Animator at Telltale these days.
  • Jennifer on 01 Jan, 2010, 07:21…
    I would love fort this to be true! I enjoyed episode 1! I want to see the rest!
  • Udvarnoky on 01 Jan, 2010, 07:17…
    Turns out it was in fact exactly one year ago that the previous "NOT!" Amazon page for a PC version was reported on. Creepy.
  • Ascovel on 03 Jan, 2010, 10:30…
    Not creepy. Some one on the Amazon staff likes fooling aroud with dates obviously.