This week, Microsoft broke its self imposed one-game-a-week rule and got *two* XBLA games out the door — it blew me away, which is why this story is a bit late. Gyruss, a seventeen-year-old NES game from Konami, will task you with old-school vertical shooting with new-school HD charisma. It’s easy on the wallet, too – coming in at $5 (400 Microsoft Points), it hits the impulse purchase sweet spot.
Another sweet addition to the arcade comes in the form of 3D Ultra Minigolf Adventures, a crazy minigolf "sim" from Vivendi/Wanako, giving users 18 holes of total madness, with settings ranging from the Wild West to Outer Space. Should be enough fun for $10 (800 Microsoft Points), so if you like this kind of stuff — or need a new drinking game — indulge away.
Adding to the pile-on, Ubisoft finally — finally — gave us Rainbow Six: Vegas fans the love that our unwavering dedication deserves, by way of the "Players Pack: Red Edition." For $10, you’ll get five "new" maps and two new game modes. Marshalling Yard, Roof, and Doscala Restaurant are indeed completely new additions to the existing repertoire. Two others, Kill House – Redux and Border Town – Redux, are enhanced, tweaked versions of two popular maps that originally shipped with the game. This shouldn’t be mistaken with the GRAW "Chapter Two" pack put together with that title — these aren’t mere color palette swaps. In every way, the two are nipped and tucked to become nearly indistinguishable from the originals. Changes are made to the lighting schemes and layout to completely alter the dynamics of the boards. What was important once — let’s say, the roofs on Kill House — are far less so this time around. The best part? These don’t replace the existing maps. You can still play ’em the old way if you like.
On top of that, Assassination mode tasks one team of defenders with protecting a randomly selected VIP on their team, escorting him to a specific area while the assault team attempts to take him out. It’s huge fun. Conquest mode — the less exciting of the two — has teams battling it out for three points on a map to accumulate points. It, too, fits Rainbow Six perfectly. Get to it!
