The International House of Mojo

If you've been looking for old LucasArts demos to play, spending your time wishing someone would update the LucasArts classics section of Lucasfiles, and just can't find old demos anywhere, now there are some. Gamers Hell has posted a huge collection of classic LEC demo downloads (both Star Wars and classic adventure games) on their LucasArts Demo Invasion page. Woo.

While we were down, the official LucasArts website unleashed launched their new Wrath Unleashed game page. It's chock full of flashy graphics and game info, but the downloads area, as well as a couple other sections, are still under construction. Still, if you're interested in unleashing some Wrath on your console next February, you should check it out.

Anyone who's a LucasArts.com member (and you should really all have accounts there), and received the latest LucasArts Insider email may have noticed they ask you to fill out a survey. We suggest you all fill it out, since surely you're all Insider subscribers. It's juicy.

The survey is heavily leaned towards adventure gaming, Sam & Max in particular. There are standard questions about what game systems you own, but then they veer off into crazytown, asking you what your favorite humor style is, if you like mini games in your adventures, if you've watched the Sam & Max cartoon show, and if youre comfortable purchasing games online. Be their guinea pigs! Register with LEC! Complete the survey!

If for some reason you haven?t decided on whether or not to purchase Armed and Dangerous (what the hell is wrong with you?), LucasArts has now released a PC demo of the game. Unfortunately you have to battle FilePlanet for it, but it?s probably worth the effort. Check it, and don't forget to also read our own glowing review of this new original title.

If any of you pre-ordered Armed & Dangerous, tried to play the included copy of Sam & Max Hit the Road, and noticed that the sound cut out part way through, you're not alone. Aaron Giles, author of the XP compatible Hit the Road port, notes that there was an error while mastering the A&D pre-order discs, causing Sam & Max's sound data file to be corrupted. He offers possible solutions on his site, but unfortunately they all require already owning a copy of the old DOS version of the game.

As pointed out on our forums, LucasArts has recently made available a special bundle offer featuring all four Monkey Island games in one pack. To preemptively dash any hopes that this is some sort of collectors edition, the page specifically states that the games do not ship in a compilation box, but instead come in jewel cases and CD sleeves. Most likely that means you'll get Monkey Island 1 and 2 via the "Monkey Madness" CD in a paper sleeve, and both CMI and EMI in their budget jewel case editions.

However, the lack of collectability comes with the upside that it only costs $27.95. That's a damn good deal for anyone, so we expect you to buy them up until LEC is 100% out of stock, forcing them to re-print everything as a lovely deluxe boxed set that you won't be able to afford after buying out all the current cheap ones*. Honestly though, buy them for all your friends for Christmas and then insist over and over again that they play them. Also tell them to read Mojo.<:MORENEWS:>

* You all becoming poor and unable to afford it will then hopefully cause LucasArts to lower the price of this hypothetical deluxe edition (which will never realistically exist, but shh), allowing broke Jake to afford it, and finally throw out his pirated Mac copies of Monkey 1 and 2 that he got from his friend Andrew* in 5th grade.

* No, not tel, a different Andrew.

LucasArts just announced that in the next couple of weeks they'll be offering a playable demo of Armed & Dangerous for the PC. In the same release they also announced that additional downloadable levels will be coming out for both PC (via the internet) and Xbox (via Xbox Live).

Armed & Dangerous is, as far as we know, now available in stores for you to buy. Assuming we break our recent tradition of doing nothing, we should have our own review of Armed & Dangerous up in the coming days, or weeks, or months. For now, check out these sites' perspectives on the game...<:MORENEWS:>

IGN Xbox gives the game an 8.2/10. They say, "Yes, it's all about shooting and blowing things up, but when did that become stale? In our minds, it hasn't. Of course, there are some games where shooting is very boring. Luckily, Armed and Dangerous, believe it or not, is a smart shooter that actually requires some brain activity and/or superhuman reflexes. We also really loved the humor in the game. Without it, the game would still be a good shooter - just not as fun."

GameSpot gives it an alright 7.3/10, saying "Armed and Dangerous is a good game, but toward the end of it, you'll likely be far more interested in seeing how the story ends--and the jokes it tells along the way--than in its gameplay. For fans of frantic shooters, this is a game worth renting, but its gameplay isn't remarkable enough to recommend as a purchase."

1up.com gives the game a respectable 8/10, saying "You can tell the designers were snickering at themselves the entire time they were making this game -- it's a decent shooter in itself, but to this base they've added a vibrant set of eccentric cutscenes and weapons that make A&D a must-play for anyone with a decent sense of humor."

Games Domain gives it a 5/5, saying, "What pushes this little ditty into the realm of extraordinary is the sheer amount of brilliant humor that has been poured into the title. No, this isn't potty humor, so don't go expecting Conker-style grade school laughs; rather, the game takes pot shots at everything from Star Wars, to the Arthurian Legends to race relations and vegetarians."

The sometimes questionable GamePro gives the game a 4.5/5, and they say "But despite its technical achievements, the real star of Armed and Dangerous is the exhilarating and thoroughly challenging gameplay. You have the choice to go against relentless swarms of foes with barrels blazing or pick off enemies methodically while using the level layouts to your advantage. Some levels require multiple tries, but the gameplay is so tight and well executed that you won?t care."

In the print magazines, Armed & Dangerous received a 7.1/10 in EGM, 9 out of 10 in Official XBox Magazine, and an "A" from Play Magazine. Additionally, the game is currently receiving an average of 98% (from 2 PC scores), and 89% (from 5 XBox scores) on Game Rankings.

Overall, the game seems to have run the review gauntlet and come out pretty unscathed despite a couple 7/10's. Hopefully one of us will be formally weighing in on the game sometime soon. Hopefully.

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This just in from Ronda Scott, the official LucasArts Community Relations lady: today is Ronda Scott's birthday! Ronda is the excellent person who helps Mojo get the screenshots and interviews and news that we run from LucasArts. So be sure to wish her a happy birthday so that she will continue to talk to us.

On TheForce.net this weekend is an artwork-filled description-ridden in-depth look at the upcoming Wrath Unleashed. Anyone interested in unleashing their wrath should be already reading it, though strangely it seems like you might want a general grasp of what Wrath is about before reading the preview.

For more on Wrath Unleashed check out DJG's hands-on impressions in our writeup or the official Wrath website.

Theres a new Armed & Dangerous trailer up at the official site, showcasing the game's uniquely extreme aresnal, funky TV show style. Unfortunately, LucasArts was extremely rude and built the video trailer into the Armed & Dangerous flash site, so I can't give you a direct link, and modem users are out of luck on saving a local copy. There's a Windows Media version at GameSpot.

This video is damn good, though, and we highly encourage viewing it in whatever way possible.

CShutt pointed me to this thread over at Something Awful, where some dude writes about having the chance to check out some voice recording for Sam & Max Freelance Police. A quote:

While it was just line for line, some notes on the content of the first part.

• There's a couple mini games - one called "Wasp Darts" another has something to do with bumper cars.
• TONS of hilarious jokes in here, lots of monty python referances, some movie spoofs ("Our couch is like a box of chocolates," Max sputters)
• A "west side story"ish sequence, Max and Sam start their own gang.
• A hostage situation with a series of demands that must be met!

Sounds interesting, if it's actually true. ? ? Check out some more info here all of which should be considered highly unofficial. (There is, however, a small sound clip recorded by the voice of Sam for the poster's voice mail)

If anyone's been wanting to get a closer look at that Sam & Max Freelance Police trailer that came out at E3, a nice high-res high-framerate version is now online at LucasFiles (this is the trailer that came on the Armed & Dangerous preview disc, and has already appeared on a few other sites, but now it's up just for you!).

Also, if you were considering downloading the Secret Weapons Over Normandy PC demo, but were too pissed off at GameSpy and FilePlanet's nutty download procedures to do it, that is now mirrored on LucasFiles as well, minus the hassle. Hooray!

Though I think it's a few days (weeks?) old now, we seem to have missed this interview on Games Domain with Armed & Dangerous producer Aaron Loeb. Here's a good quote:

"A lot of third-person shooters focus on stealth and fighting one or two people at a time. The over-the-top element of Armed & Dangerous, in which you face hundreds of enemies at once, really is different, we think. The other element is that we were working with LucasArts to rekindle the spirit of fun that was in their classic adventure games, with a modern twist of serious, heavy-duty action."

All this and more can be found in the full interview at Games Domain. More info about Armed & Dangerous can be found here on the Mojo game page.

Source: JBRAA

According to a release LucasArts just sent out, people who beat all of Secret Weapons Over Normandy's Campaign missions will be able to fly both X-Wings and TIE Fighters in the game's Instant Action mode (Although not both at the same time, unless you're very coordinated indeed). People with consoles also get to use them in multiplayer games. No word yet on the comparative firepower of a WWII-era fighter and a blaster-armed X-Wing.

Earlier it was reported that Secret Weapons Over Normandy would be receiving a fully orchestral score. It did. Now it seems LucasArts has taken it one step further, and will be releasing a soundtrack CD. According to this report on Music 4 Games, the soundtrack is a 2 disc set, with one CD containing the score, and a second CD of bonus material type stuff. The soundtrack will be available around December 9th, and can be ordered now from La-La Land Records.

Anyone out there already in posession of, or looking to buy Secret Weapons Over Normandy should be interested to know that the first downloadable SWON content has been made available via XBox Live, the XBox online network. The downloadable bonuses include two planes (Vought F4U Corsair Fighter and P-40E "Kittyhawk") and a new paintjob skin for one of the existing planes.

It sounds like LucasArts and Totally Games plan on continuing to dump bonus content into this game via Live over the coming months, so that's probably worth checking out. I'd personally love a plane with Max's gaping tooth-filled maw painted on the nose, but you know. More on the new XBox Live content can be found at the official SWON website.

GameSpot has run part three of their continuing developer diary series for Armed & Dangerous. This week's entry talks about the amount of work that goes into each bit of a game, and tracks one line of dialogue from it's inception in a bar one night to it's fully post-processed appearance in the game.

Honestly, now that I've made a game, I am convinced it's impossible. ... Making games is like the Road Runner cartoons. When Wile E. Coyote runs off a cliff and doesn't fall because he hasn't realized it's impossible for him to run in midair, he's a video game developer. As long as you don't look down and realize you're doomed to fall, you can keep running.

You can find part 1 of the diary here, and part two here. Note that part 2 is written by official captain of awesome (and official Armed & Dangerous complainer), Dan Pettit.

Anyone with an XBox should have already picked up this month's Official XBox Magazine, whose coverdisc contains a playable Armed & Dangerous demo. For the rest of us, IGN has uploaded five gameplay videos for you to take a look at. Says the Scumm Bar's RemiO about the A&D demo: "This is the most addictive, funny, pure fun game I've played in ages, reminiscent of those old Amiga games where gameplay and originality took the front seat to flashy graphics."

A new release has come and gone, and with it, a first batch of reviews. This time, the critics take a look at Secret Weapons Over Normandy. Here we go...<:MORENEWS:>

GameSpy gives the title 4 out of 5 stars, saying that "Normandy is the opposite of realistic in too many ways to count, and that's what makes it fun... everything is geared toward ease of play and the thrill of conflict." GameSpy also praises the game's level design and live orchestral score.

Gaming Age gives the new Larry Holland game a B+. "In short," the reviewer writes, "Secret Weapons Over Normandy looks very good, it's just not a graphical powerhouse. It looks more like an old WWII movie than a summer blockbuster, which fits perfectly... The story is interesting, well told and serves as the perfect excuse to get into the cockpit of the era's most famous aircraft."

IGN gives the game a reasonable 8.0 out of 10. "First and foremost," the four-page article states, "Secret Weapons attempts to bridge the gap between historical accuracy and arcade sensibility... LucasArts can realize much higher returns on their investment development with the PS2 and Xbox versions and it's apparent that that's the target for this game."

Secret Weapons Over Normandy is in stores now for the PC, PS2, and Xbox.