Black Inc. to release Ion Assault on Xbox LIVE Arcade

by: Jake - posted: 7/7/2009 10:17:00 AM

Black Inc. has announced that Ion Assault will come to Xbox LIVE Arcade? Why does it seem like Xbox gets all the love? Come on, throw Sony a bone, here, man! Smart, though.. Yet another Xbox exlusive can only be MORE insentive to buy an Xbox 360 and subscribe to Xbox LIVE. Ion Assault will mark the first game released for Xbox LIVE Arcade to come from a German game studio. Xbox gets all the milestones, too.

Black Inc. Announces Ion Assault For Xbox LIVE Arcade
800 Microsoft Points Get Germanys First Space Combat Title

Cologne, July 6th, 2009 – Black Inc., the core gaming division of RTL
Interactive GmbH, today announces the release of Ion Assault, the
first Xbox LIVE® Arcade title from a German games studio. Developed by
German developer Coreplay, Ion Assault offers Xbox 360® gamers a
top-level gaming experience that makes full use of the technical
possibilities provided by Microsoft's next generation console in order
to offer arcade fans an action romp featuring outstanding graphics and
gameplay.

In 2183 humanity discovers an energy source that facilitates travel
into new regions of space. Gigantic mother ships collect the newly
discovered fuel from the distant energy fields and transport it to
Earth. When the fleet is destroyed in an alien attack, the player sets
out on a perilous journey home in a small harvester. In Ion Assault,
instead of conventional weapons, players use the free energy particles
that are abundant in space to fend off swarms of aliens. The particles
are bundled and the player is able to shoot them at asteroids and
enemy ships. The particles are not destroyed in this process, but are
redistributed in space, ready to be magnetically attracted again and
re-used. Their random distribution makes for dynamic gameplay and
calls for a more strategic approach.

“Through the dynamic particle and fluid system the player faces a
constant challenge." says Peter Ohlmann, Coreplay Technical Director.
"The immense variety of effects, and the scope of the variables, makes
Ion Assault a true next-gen game. It would simply not have been
technically possible to implement this game concept on older
consoles."

Ion Assault offers four scenarios with gorgeous, detailed visuals,
each with different types of opponents, bosses, and background themes.
In the course of the campaign players get to upgrade their spaceships
and will, in turn, be able to affect power-ups that enable things such
as an increase in ship speed, or an enlarged collected particles
radius. Thanks to special power-ups, such as the ability to create
temporary black holes, even large numbers of opponents can be dealt
with. Players also get to show off their skills in various
multi-player modes, and compare their scores to those of the world's
best Ion Assault pilots through online highscore lists.

Birgit Hönsch, divisional manager of Games Publishing at RTL
interactive GmbH, says: "We are very excited to be able to extend our
portfolio by including a title for Xbox LIVE Arcade. Xbox LIVE Arcade
is a strong platform for unusual games, and therefore is a perfect
match for a title such as Ion Assault.” She continued “With its
innovative game principles and cutting edge graphics, Coreplay's
arcade debut is the equal of other competitor products. With Ion
Assault we not only open a new distribution method, but we also place
Germany firmly on the map as far as cutting edge game development is
concerned."

Ion Assault will be available for download in the summer of 2009 via
Xbox LIVE. Arcade, and priced at 800 Microsoft Points.

A trailer and assets can be found at the following ftp (not for public
use): ftp://ftp.rtl.de/Ion%20Assault/

Microsoft, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox LIVE, and the Xbox logos are
trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies and are used under
license from Microsoft.

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About RTL interactive Games Publishing:
The Games Publishing division of RTL interactive GmbH (RTL Games GmbH
until December 31, 2008) is responsible for the entire computer and
console games business of the Media Group RTL Germany. The team
designs and publishes video games for different types of gamers and
focuses on the mass market of arcade and casual games. Further,
individual titles by the Games Publishing Unit appeal to fans of
adventure, fantasy and role playing games. Generally, RTL Games is
aiming to serve all console platforms as well as PC with its future
projects. In the market, the games publisher operates with a
consistent three label strategy: Games with a direct connection to
television and especially family friendly titles are released by the
label Playtainment. The brand RTL Sports encompasses successful sports
video games. The label Black Inc. appeals to fans of adventure,
fantasy and role playing games, providing high-quality, complex
premium titles especially for core gamers. For further information
please go to www.blackinc-games.com

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