wideload

WorthPlaying notes that the coupon code ASPYRTHANKS can be used at GameAgent to reduce the price of Wideload Games' Stubbs the Zombie from $10 to free. Sweet!

Well... I get the feeling something like this has happened before.......

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/disney-interactive-studios-agrees-to-acquire-wideload-games-inc-2009-09-08

Wideload Games, developers of Hail to the Chimp and Stubbs the Zombie, is developing a new game: Texas Cheat'Em for Xbox Live Arcade and the PlayStation Network, due out this spring. Later it will come to PC. No details yet on the Wideload site, or an indication of whether this is either "Hot Sauce" or the "Rainbow Space Car", still listed as "coming soon" on the site.

UPDATE: According to GameSpot, this is actually a production of the Wideload Shorts division, which previously produced Cyclomite.

GameCock, famed interrupter of awards ceremonies, holder of funerals for tradeshows, and publishers of games by Wideload such as Hail to the Chimp, have been acquired by SouthPeak.

SouthPeak published last year's Two Worlds RPG on the PC and 360, a game that was widely criticized for failing to live up to the high standards set by Bethesda's similar game, Oblivion.

Wideload's Halo-engine zombie game, Stubbs the Zombie, is available for the PC for only five bucks now from Steam. Thanks GameFocus for the heads-up.

Palluxo.com has a (late) review of the Mac version of Stubbs the Zombie. Fair warning: it spoils the entire plot, if you happen to mind that, and doesn't really describe the gameplay.

The Escapist is usually a cut above other gaming sites when it comes to content, especially long content. They've done a short review of Wideload's Hail to the Chimp, and the long and short of it is, they didn't like it much.

Alright, let me start of by saying that if you are on insane, you are screwed. Go home. If you are already at home, leave. This level scared me away from the game (and these walkthroughs) for a long time, but now I am back to save those of you stalling here. My apologies, but I wasn’t doing much better. I made it through the level in a couple of hours while writing this guide, so it should be doable. Good luck, and thanks to hawk for inspiring me to go back and face my fears.

 Click here for the complete text.

From 5:00 to 7:00 PM Eastern next Friday, July 11, you can play Hail to the Chimp online with the developers, Wideload Games.

The play session will include Bungie alums Alex "The Man" Seropian, Matt Segur, and Doug Zartman.

The team at TeamXbox rated Wideload's sophomore effort, Hail to the Chimp, a 7.9 out of 10, scoring highest for audio and innovation. One of the game's greatest strengths might ironically become one of its weaknesses:

While the game presents a unique take on the party game formula, Hail to the Chimp is actually at its funniest when you're not even playing. The main menu of the game is presented as a news broadcast from the GRR News Network. From the deadpan delivery of news anchor Woodchuck Chumley to the hilarious commercials and PSAs, you'll find yourself watching the game more than actually playing it.

TeamXbox suggests that when you are playing Chimp, you play with friends, since that is where the game really shines.

It's tough for a game to be funny. So it's no slight praise when GamesRadar says that Hail to the Chimp is funny-- if you're in your 20s:

Through it all, the comedy keeps flowing, often in the form of commercials or news reports. Just how funny these bits are is debatable here in the office, but we have the same arguments about Family Guy and Saturday Night Live. However, we can all agree that Hail to the Chimp is definitely a step above most games that bill themselves as "hilarious." And also that you have to be in your 20s to appreciate it.

Maybe feeling like in you're in your 20s will be sufficient. GamesRadar scores Hail to the Chimp 7/10, or "good".

The news isn't all bad for Crackers the chimp, though. 1Up's reviewer gave the game a B+, and the average of users and editors on the site is an A.

The site praised the game for the humorous news segments as well as the unabashedly strange gameplay elements.

And when this plays into the objectives, the game becomes great fun. One of my favorite modes places campaign posters in a literal mud-slinging competition -- the more clams you collect, the more mud you can throw at opponents' posters, and the last person to keep their poster clean wins. Every mode is built around competition, so the game is more replayable than something like Mario Party despite having fewer modes.

Hail to the Chimp is a good concept executed well, and available at a discount price-- remember this is $40, not the usual $60 next-gen minimum.

For a game company that made its name with a game about a zombie who used his body parts as weapons, it's ironic to say that only now, with the release of Hail to the Chimp, are things starting to get ugly. Problem is, the ugly thing is the reviews.

Citing game modes that are too similar to each other and AI that was often unclear on the concept of how to play the game, IGN gave HttC a 3.5 out of 10 and said it had "zero redeeming qualities". Ugly, indeed.

Another disappointing review for Hail to the Chimp: Variety says this political humor game isn't funny, and isn't really political. Ouch!

Kotaku's list of game releases for this week has Wideload's Hail to the Chimp slated to hit store shelves on Tuesday, July 1-- and features the cover art for the game as the lead for what they call a "thin week".